In Celebration of Small Things: Frescoes in a 12th Century Chapel in France

Notorious for getting lost, I outdid myself that particular morning and ended up taking right turns instead of lefts. What should have been a  short ride to a nearby village, ended in a scenic tour taking well over two hours. The outcome however, was well worth it. I arrived at the small village in Sousigné  and noticed a small group of women near the 12th century chapel  Noticing my awed gaze one of the women approached me and explained.

“The church has some wonderful frescoes dating from the 12th century” Explaining that I was Australian and unused to such antiquity, she introduced me to the  teacher who invited me to accompany her and obtain the key to the locked church from a nearby house.  Apparently the church was kept locked and only rarely opened-but the fates aligned that particular morning so that it would open just for me at that time. The teacher of the group of budding artists was a village local, a warm and welcoming person who was willing to go out of her way for a visiting stranger. She obtained the key and opened the church door but being pressed tor time handed it to me and asked if I could close the door when I had finished my visit. So here I was alone in an ancient church with magnificent frescoes  which had been originally painted in the 12th century. Had I not been lost I would have arrived too early and the group and teacher engaged in their class. Had I arrived five minutes later, the group would have disbanded. I was acutely aware of the synchronicity and serendipity of the experience. I entered the small space whose solid stone walls were now beginning to crack and took my time marvelling at the fading, yet still exquisitely beautiful paintings above the statue of the virgin and child. I appreciated the rare opportunity to  meditate alone and savour the sacredness of the place before expressing my gratitude for this experience.

After some time I locked the ancient portal, returned the key, and set off on my trusty bike for the return journey. Getting lost can produce some amazing findings.