Across the Niagara region are many abandoned buildings. Barns, houses, entire farms. Each one has a story that will in all likelihood never be told again. Histories that died with them. At one time these buildings were new. Full of hope for the future. Full of life. Strong men and women raising families. Noisy children running. Animals in the yard. All bursting with energy. The joy and vitality of youth. As life took its inevitable toll, things changed. Fell in time into disrepair, and then ruin. These are the everyday tragedies that life deals, everywhere in this world.
I like to imagine how things used to be. Who lived here? What was life like for them? Where are they now? As years pass answers fade. The people and their vibrant lives are… forgotten. All that remains are these shells. The world turns. One day, maybe soon, they will be replaced by parking lots or subdivisions. New life replaces old. That is the way of the world. Until then, these abandoned barns remind us of the fragility and foolishness of human vanity. One day we will be dust, along with everything we ever did. Everyone we ever knew. Every mark we made on this world. If that doesn’t make you laugh, nothing will.
Pride is a valuable thing. It can drive us to unimaginable heights. But keep it in perspective. One day our own barns will stand abandoned and empty. These are the everyday tragedies that life deals.
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