Hadrian, how are you?

Hadrian's Wall, Northumberland region, England

October 2007

In the middle of nowhere, I became overwhelmed by God's design and His diversity. I am in the North. No one is here...except for God. He created this land...

A horse is staring at me, almost mocking me as it slowly, deliberately chews a piece of hay. It snorts, "Wake up sunshine."

I narrow my eyes in annoyance. It's 8 o'clock in the morning, and I am exhausted. Yesterday's activities were exhilarating and yet extremely exhausting. Isn't that funny that almost all of the most exhilarating experiences are the most exhausting?

This horse is just outside my window directly over my bed at the little bed and breakfast where we have bunked in for the night, and isn't what I expected to wake up to first thing this morning. Of course, everything that's happened to me since I have arrived has been beyond my expectations. Yesterday is soaring to the top of the best experiences of my entire life...my entire life! What did I do? I visited a wall. Yes, a wall! But this wasn't just any wall; this was Hadrian's wall. My limbs are aching from yesterday's trek, but they are also aching to go back. I'm standing here staring at a horse and dying to go back to climb a wall. What's happened to me?

Maybe it's the air, or maybe it's the landscape, or maybe it's the fact that I drove for miles and miles and didn't see another human being, but whatever it is, there is something about the Northumberland region of England that grabs my attention and just won't let it go. Driving up here yesterday from the great city of York (which is another story all in itself) the city life gave way to a world of hills with the dominant population being sheep. The hills slowly got bigger and I noticed an earth mound running parallel to the road. Eli and Sophie, my two friends that actually live here, and whom I've come to visit, told me that that little mound was Hadrian's Wall.

"You're kidding!" I exclaimed. "There's absolutely no way that that is the great Hadrian's Wall."

Forgive me, but quick history lesson for those of you are asking what's so important about Hadrian's Wall - the former twenty foot wall was commissioned by the Roman Emperor Hadrian around AD 122 to form the furthermost northern boundary of the Roman Empire with it's main goal being to keep the spirited Scotsmen from raiding Roman homes and villages. Soldiers were posted at milecastles along the way to keep an eye on all the surroundings. Massive ditches were even dug on either side for more layers of protection, for there were these people called the Scots that the Romans didn't want in their lands. So, I had all of this in my mind as I drove up here, but now all I was seeing was an earth mound. I suppose two thousand years will do that to you.

"Are we going to stop?" I asked them.

Eli looked back at me smiling, "Soon enough, trust me, you'll want to wait."

The mound slowly got bigger. Height and width. From the earth mound emerged moss covered stones stacked tightly together. The road continued to follow it closely winding through this idyllic countryside of rolling hills and countless sheep. We left the wall briefly to go check into our bed and breakfast which like almost all of them up here is a working farm. Bed and Breakfasts are the only option for accommodations in this area so don't expect five star hotels if you're coming for a visit.

But why would you want to? Up here, it's all about the simple things, all about embracing life, all about the lovely pigs...

Luxurious accommodations keep you in bed watching television. Up here you are meant to

be outside breathing in fresh air, taking nature walks, and rediscovering self.

Tucked away in a little valley with massive hills rising proudly behind it, a two story home is in the center of a bustling farm. A little stream runs gently through the middle of it. Stacked stone fences section off different vegetables gardens from one another. Pigs wallow in the their sty, a dog hurries along, and a horse neighs his welcome. It couldn't get any better than this. Inside the cozy cottage, we were ushered up a narrow flight of stairs to two minimalist bedrooms by a kind, elderly woman. Mother and I dropped our bags in our room and hurried back outside. I was hungering to see more of this wall. There had to be more left of the Roman's great legacy. Driving again, we passed a pub, and a few other farms, but the threat of over population definitely wasn't a problem up here. People were scarce.

We pulled next to a lake just as dusk was approaching. On the other side was a giant rock structure.

I now knew why we waited, for in front of me was a skeleton of a former milecastle. I ran towards it around the lake and up the hill. After catching my breath I quickly lost it again for a completely different reason when I surveyed the scene surrounding me. I was in a rock square abutted to the wall which was gaining height. From where I stood on the top, I could look down and see the lake and the three tiny figures of my companions whowere hurrying up the

hill to catch me. Taking in a deep breath of the cold, clean, refreshing air I spun around embracing the scene. There was nothing but miles of hills and sheep in sight. On my far right, just on the horizon, I could make out a huddle of cottages with smoking silently escaping from their chimneys. A shiver ran through my body at the thought of the fire. My adrenaline rush was wearing off and I could feel the cold creeping in, but cold weather had never stopped me before. Tucking my giant black scarf tighter into my jacket, I eyed the wall. A thought came into my head and I acted on it before my mom could object. I jumped up onto the wall and smiled down at Eli, Sophie, and mom just as they were rounding the corner.

"Get down from there! You can fall!" My mom said just as I had suspected.

I smiled at her and explained that actually it was between three and four feet wide up here and that I was fine. She rolled her eyes and starting walking towards the sheep that were huddling together on the field. They carried more interest to her than the wall. It stretched on for miles and on out of sight. The total length from one coast line to the other is around eight-four miles. I knew we didn't have time for that, nor strength and energy most likely, but a quick hike couldn't hurt any of us. Eli joined me up on the wall and we continued along taking in the countryside, taking pictures, and sharing thoughts of what had probably passed here around the milecastle. What kind of stories the soldiers must have had. Countless stories of bloodshed are recorded between the Romans and the Scots who didn't like the Romans being up here one little bit along with stories of escape attempts by the English who didn't like the Roman rule. I almost felt like the silence was taunting me with countless stories to learn.

Something was bothering me, something wasn't making sense. I wondered aloud where all of the rocks had gone. If this wall had been twenty feet tall, and was now only hitting four on average, where had all of the extra rocks gone?

"Farmers," Sophie explained.

I found this more than ironic. Farmers were the culprits. The rocks that had hemmed in their ancestors now made up their barns and land dividers. The wall of the great Roman Empire was now sheltering horses, chickens, and pigs. A lot of things had changed in two thousand years. So many stories over this history saturated land...

The dusk was quickly turning into the night. Twinkling lights from the pubs and farms dotted the horizon taking the place of the curling smoke stacks and creating a scene of absolute serenity. The low whisper of the wind was only infiltrated by the "bahing" from a herd of sheep and their shuffling along the field.

"The sheep! The sheep just jumped!" Mom yelled suddenly breaking the peace. Mom had been following them closely along the path trying to get as close to them as possible, but never close enough to touch. Apparently she had scared one so much, it had jumped flat hoofed up into the air. Our laughter rang forth and echoed across the land.

We followed the wall over the hills, the climbing became steep and the wall got higher. It was close to seven feet now. The darkness however was too much. Reluctantly, we had to turn around, and change our history search to a beeline for our bed and breakfast. It was only then that I had noticed the growling of four stomachs.

We discovered that we weren't the only travelers staying here. Another family had come up to see what they too might discover. From the kitchen, we were served delicious rustic food in a cozy dining room for fifteen at maximum. The quiet, cozy homelike atmosphere of the bed and breakfast was growing on me. We finished the evening in the living room by a wood fire with old records playing in the back ground. Nothing can beat that...

This morning, I'm amazed at myself. I touched history yesterday, well, more like I climbed history yesterday. I imagine the countless stories of bloodshed, deception, greed, love, and turmoil that has passed over Hadrian's Wall and now...now it's crumbling. The feeling, however, that there was more there, more to be discovered, more to know still lingers in my mind. The voices of history are crying out for their stories to be told!!

Ok...I admit it, I can be a little dramatic...

So on to simpler and more realistic things. I look back at my horse watching him eat his hay. I'm hungry. Thankfully, they are serving breakfast downstairs in thirty minutes. I can't help but smile at my new friend who is still standing at my window watching me and wonder what I will discover in this idyllic forgotten land. I mean after all where else have I woken up to a horse staring at me?