Paths to Explore: Dear Ancestors....

Your tombstone stands among the rest;
neglected and alone
The name and date are chiseled out
on polished, marbled stone
It reaches out to all who care
It is too late to mourn
You did not know that I'd exist
You died and I was born.
Yet each of us are cells of you
in flesh, in blood, in bone.
Our blood contracts and beats a pulse
entirely not our own.
Dear Ancestor, the place you filled
one hundred years ago
Spreads out among the ones you left
who would have loved you so.
I wonder if you lived and loved,
I wonder if you knew
That someday I would find this spot,
and come to visit you."

-- Dear Ancestor by Walter Butler Palmer

Today we walked among ancient ruins. The city existed long before the birth of Christ and was one of the most important cities for the early Romans. To be able to walk through the ancient cemetery, see how cults and early Christians co-existed in harmony as well as the construction of aqua ducts to funnel water through the city was a phenomenal experience. The wonder of realizing just how long ago people walked in this exact same spot, worked, built the structures and columns that are still in existence is pretty awesome. It is far off the tourist map and a treasure that is approximately an hour away by train. This area is well preserved, a place for students of archeology to come and study or for the odd tourist to make their way to. We were quite taken with the thought of how many people had walked over the very same stone roads that we travelled on today and how many centuries had passed since the inception of Ostia Antica and its early inhabitants roamed these same paths.
It is a very peaceful place to wander through and with the exception of some workers and about six other people we had the place to ourselves to explore.

Ostia Antica is a large archeological site, close to the modern suburb of Ostia, that was the location of the harbour city of ancient Rome. At the mouth of the River Tiber, Ostia was Rome's seaport, but due to silting the site now lies 3 kilometres (2 miles) from the sea. The site is noted for the excellent preservation of its ancient buildings, magnificent frescoes and impressive mosaics.