TINTERN ABBEY

On our way home from Bath, we stopped at
Tintern Abbey which is in Wales, a medieval
Cistercian church by the River Wye.  The
river forms one of the borders between Wales
and England.  The Abbey was surrendered to
King Henry VIII, with his Dissolution of the
Monasteries act, all the goodies were taken
from it, and it was left to decay.  Two hundred
years passed before its beauty and value began
to be appreciated again, and in early 1900 it
was recognized as a monument of importance,
and repair work began.  I was actually stunned
by its beauty, especially in the early evening
light, and moved by its endurance and strong
presence.
Oh yes, and apparently in 1967 Allan Ginsburg
dropped acid at the site, and wrote his poem
Wales Visitation.  And of course there is the
famous poem by Wordsworth, very long, 
called Lines Written A Few Miles Above
Tintern Abbey.  Not acid-inspired.

(When I published this post, for some reason 
one of the photos appeared 3 or 4 times - and
I can't get rid of them!!  Julia!!???  Help!!??)

--That time is past,
And all its aching joys are now no more,
And all its dizzy raptures….
- Wordsworth

And I have felt
a presence that disturbs me with the joy
of elevated thoughts; a sense sublime
of something far more deeply interfused…
- Wordsworth

Therefore let the moon
Shine on thee in thy solitary walk;
And let the misty mountain winds be free
To blow against thee…
- Wordsworth

No imperfection in the budded mountain
Valleys breathe, heaven and earth move together…
Grass shimmers green…
Fall on the ground, O great Wetness, O Mother, No harm on your body!…
- Ginsburg