Happy Valentine's Day from the city of love, Paris.
"And the cathedral was not only company for him, it was the universe; nay, more, it was nature itself. He never dreamed that there were other hedgerows than the stained glass windows in perpetual bloom. Other shade than that of the stone foilage always budding, loaded with birds in the thickets of saxon capitals; other mountains than the colossal towers of the church or other oceans than Paris roaring at their feet."
Victor Hugo, Notre Dame de Paris 1831
So the last time I left you I was heading to the bell towers to meet Quasimodo. All I can say is it started with this.
And continued upward for 400 more steps like them. I kept thinking to myself, "slow and steady wins the race." "Just put one foot after the other".
I took a break at the gift shop, bought nothing. I was just gathering a bit of oxygen and then continued on. The stairs became narrower and narrower in their spiral fashion. Just when I thought I would never get there, I was met by the most famous one of them........
The Gargoyles of Notre Dame are legendary.
Part rain spout system, part spiritual protection, these stone creatures have entertained the imaginations of many. I couldn't get over how each one was distinctly different and held their own personality.
I was so involved with the gargoyles that I hadn't yet noticed the views,
or how high up I was.
After that downward glance I was ready to move on. A large orange arrow was on a pillar pointing me in the direction of a little door, which was maybe 3 feet high. Ducking was in order. Upon entering the scenery immediately changed from one of stone to one of wood. It was so easy to imagine someone living here, ringing the bells.
From behind me a deep voice rang out "madame" and that's when I screamed. " Oh Mon Dieux" (oh my god)! In my very bestest French I just had to know what he was doing up here and why it was necessary to scare the living daylights out of me. In his very best French he calmed my nerves by saying,"He didn't want me to miss the bell, la cloche."
The bell? You won't believe this, more stairs......
It was at this point that I felt I could miss "La Cloche", that the towers were enough but he insisted and so more stairs I climbed. While I'm climbing this might be a good time to tell you the story of the "real" Quasimodo. In 2010, a british archivist discovered that in the 1820's there had been a real-life hunchback named Trajin who was foreman of a government sculpting studio in Paris who made post Revolution restorations to the Cathedral. Victor Hugo knew this man and most probably modeled his character Quasimodo after him. Ah here we are, The Bell. His name is Emmanuel, is rung only on holidays, and is 300 years old.
From here I had more stairs to climb until I got to the very very top. I could feel the breeze blowing before I even got to the roof. As I walked through the doorway this very happy face met me with a big "Bienvenue sur le top"(Welcome to the top.)
I didn't learn his name but I just had to find out how one gets a job like this. So I asked him, "Did you ever imagine when you were a child that you would be working security on the top of Notre Dame's bell tower?"
His response was so funny! he said, "Not at all. I never even visited Notre Dame as a child let alone thought I would be working here."
"What's the best part of your job?"
"Meeting people from all over the world, from every known religion, and keeping the rhythm of the year by sharing in people's devotion to Paris by visitng Notre Dame. You can't imagine Christmas for example. On Christmas eve we have over 10,000 visitors. On the Annunciation in the summer hundreds of thousands of people come here. It's just incredible."
"So maybe you're the Quasimodo of today." I said.
"Non, I don't have a hunchback. I'm just a greeter."
Let's pause for just a moment before we head down.
Victor Hugo wasn't the first to love this cathedral nor will he be the last. This site has had religious activity for well over a thousand years. The land itself and what it stands for leads ordinary people to do extraordinary things. Do you remember our headless wonder from a couple of days ago?
This is Saint Denis, the patron saint of Paris. He's the man who took Paris from the Roman religion to a Christian religion. Here's what happened: St. Denis was told by the Roman rulers to stop preaching christianity. If he didn't he would be executed. Well he didn't stop and he was executed but here's where the story takes a turn and makes him not only a saint but a wonderment as well.
St. Denis was executed on Montmartre. After being executed he picked up his head, washed it off in the fountain, placed his head under his arm and walked for 6 miles, preaching all the way, until he fell down an died.That spot is now a cathdrael call St. Denis Basilique. Every king and queen of France is buried there. Why is he on Notre Dame de Paris? Because he is one of 14 helpers who listens to petioners prayers. As people come into Notre Dame they can look up and see him knowing that they are heard.
I couldn't leave Paris without telling you that incredible story. There's another version of that story which says his body was thrown into the Seine and buried later. It's up to you to decide whichever story you want to but I love the Atta boy version.
Though there are a million more memories of Paris, I will leave them for another time. Tomorrow, I'll be back writing from home where crafting, cooking, and gardening are in order. Thanks for letting me share my special moments with you. Be Well.
