Colossal.

The Golden Arches of 7 A.D.

Rome, Italy - This morning, we melted into the crowd, and into history.

We assembled outside the Colosseum before the lines could grow long enough to form a noose, and thought of the millions of people who had entered since it was built in the year 7 A.D.

I'm thinking the conversations at the time went along the lines of: "So, a guy goes into a wine bar, and finds himself crucified for it."

"Oh, Jesus, yeah; he grew up around the corner from my Ma."

"Yup, he's the one who made my calendar business go under."

(If blog updates cease, I have likely been struck down.)

The rounded stairs were worn soft like pearls by 2,000 years of visitors --> – some of whom were not even filled with a lust for blood.

Once flooded for naval battles, then home to gladiators and martyrs torn apart by various beasts; abandoned then inhabited by families who carved homes under the arches and stairs; and wrecked by an earthquake, the Colosseum is – quite literally – a shell of its former self.

Fifteen-hundred years will do that to your complexion.

And give you fallen arches.