Monday, April 7, 2014

Stonehenge and stuff.......

I can't describe it, but I know it when I hear it. That famed British wit.... Mary Carol, the proprietress of the Cardiff Hotel in London where Marianne and I stayed, possessed it to the hilt.  Marianne and I generally avoid the touristy spots. We like to eat where the locals eat and shun the big chain hotels. But there are some things that are just so famous, so iconic, that, well, you've just got to see and experience them....As we are both history buffs, we had some ideas and wanted to run them by Mary.
"Mary, we've got a couple of days left of our stay in England and we were thinkin' about visiting Leeds Castle...Your thoughts?"
"It's just a castle.", deadpanned Mary.
"Well then, how about The Cliffs Of Dover?"
"It's just some cliffs. You don't even see them, you just stand on them."
Surely she would endorse our next suggestion.
"Stonehenge! Certainly Stonehenge would be worth the time!!!"
Mary was unimpressed. "It's just a bunch of rocks."
I guess we're all like that a bit. We take the things around us for granted. We make "bucket lists" of faraway vacations and exciting adventures, but place so little value on the sights, sounds and experiences in our own backyard...Maybe we've done some stuff that is on somebody's else's "bucket list".  Playing in the Atlantic, attending The Masters golf tournament, holding your own child. These experiences and more are things that someone else wishes for.  Yearns for. Prays for.
You know what makes these things special, at least for me? Sharing them......
The best times in my life have been those with friends and family...Places and things we've experienced together.
For me, the things I still want to do, the places I still want to visit, if I do it alone.......it won't be worth a drop in the bucket...
The next time we go to England, Marianne and I will go to Stonehenge. And we'll remember the words of Mary Carol. And we'll laugh. Together.

1 comment:

  1. The next time, I will come with you; Stonehenge amazingly creepy! Went once - still in recovery...

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