Thursday, August 12, 2010

My littlest girls had a chance to visit a local hospital recently, and as I waited for them I wandered through St. Imier alone, thinking of Wendy and all the roaming we'd done together, but also trying to keep my spirits up by discovering my surroundings.

I happened upon a simply gorgeous building with all its windows knocked out, but no trace anywhere of vandalism. I wondered what could have happened.


As I stood staring at all the majestic detail this place has to offer, a soccer ball rolled down the street toward me. I ran toward it, kicked it back up to a waiting boy, and called out a greeting. A few minutes later another ball and another boy ... were they wondering who this stranger was staring at an abandoned building?



I ran and kicked him the ball, but not before probing him for a bit of history. He was all too glad to comply. The building had once been an equestrian center where the best horses were trained. It had succumbed to fire and been locked up for good.



Its history is noble enough, its past exciting ... but why hasn't anyone bothered to revive it? It stands in stately shame with the pride of what once was, as its tethering rings hang in regal silence.

5 comments:

Evi said...

... comme les choses sont éphémères. L'histoire et les souvenirs sont souvent tellement éloignés du présent.
Jolies photos. Bisou

penny said...

Allison, I love the the way you see beauty in what others may see only something old and useless.
It has exquisite details just like the beautiful way you write and see the world around you.

Wishing you a Happy day,
Pam

Sarah said...

La traduction Google est tellement mauvaise, que j'ai juste compris que tu jouais à la balle vers un ancien centre équestre ! J'aimerais un miracle et que demain matin en me levant je parle et comprennent l'anglais couramment :'-(. Snif.... frustrée que je suis. Au moins, les photos valent le coup d'oeil. Bravo ;)

George said...

It's obvious that this was a beautiful building before the fire -- you've captured the beauty that still exists. It would be wonderful if someone could restore it.
Thanks for visiting my site.

Diane AZ said...

What a fascinating place you happened upon. I love the details and patterns in the second image and the spider web just adds to the charm.