Two events occurred in my life yesterday–both so earth-shattering it’s hard to choose between the two as the lead in this letter.
So here are the two “headlines” in the order they happened:
JOAN WALKS AMONG THE STONES AT STONEHENGE
and
JOAN READS HER FIRST RAYMOND CHANDLER NOVEL
I’ve attached a photo, and no, it hasn’t been photoshopped. That is me standing between two upright stones at Stonehenge, my hands a hairsbreadth from–but not touching–two of the stones.
Every so often, the British Heritage Trust at Stonehenge allows groups to walk in amongst (but not touch!) the stones at sunrise. Yesterday, I was privileged to be one of a group of 32 who had that experience (which required buying a tiny British flag alarm clock so I could get up at 4:00 a.m. for the journey from London to Stonehenge). It was exhilarating to be allowed to get close enough to see where someone etched his presence in the stone in 1814, or to see where water has worn away holes in the stone, or to see the “blue stones” within the circle concealed by the larger stones without, or the moss growing on the stones right up close or to stand directly beneath one of the stone lentils. Most visitors are required to remain on a sidewalk perhaps three or four car lengths from the stones. We were the only folks there (aside from a single security guard), and the circle is large enough for me to have been there with no one else in sight. It was a feeling of sheer joy–cold and windy bliss, to be sure–to be there as the sun rose in a bright blue sky.
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