The Colosseum

As I stared straight ahead I got a glimpse of the large ruin that was ahead.

My heart raced in excitement knowing that for the first time in a long time, I would be seeing the very sight that my imagination had for so long imagined.

As my friend and I rushed to get to the front entrance, I came to the realization that we were late and were still on the hill that overlooked the large structure.

I suddenly stopped. There it was.

The Colosseum.

My lungs were sucked out of air, my brain just registered awe at the large structure. It was intermingled with the realization that something great and tragic had happened here.

As we continued walking, my gaze kept straying to the large building. It was breathtaking and imposing all at once.

I looked at my phone: we were going to be late and possibly lose our entrance.

No, absolutely not, the thought raced through my mind, I would not lose my chance to enter it.

I started running, my friend tagging close behind me. As we made our way down a large set of stairs, and crossed a small street, I saw our school group ahead.

Our RC waved us over and I exhaled a breath of relief glad that we had made it.

As we made our way inside and went through security, a sudden feeling of somberness spread throughout me.

This was the place of martyrs. The place were so many Christians had given up their life for Our Lord. They had so strongly believed that they were dying for the right cause.

A shiver ran down my spine as I touched the large stone wall and looked at the archways that were blocked by cages.

Following the crowd, I made my way around the colosseum. I didn’t see any information on the martyrs, games, or activities that had happened in the arena. All I saw was information about the architecture and the history. It was all important and startling, but it disappointed me.

Finally getting to the highest point of the colosseum, I found myself face to face with information on the gladiators. As I read it, a deep disgust and horror filled me as it described the ways they used the arena for games that would torture the slaves, Christians, and prisoners for the entertainment of the roman people. Not only did the gladiators fight to death, but the torture of the Christians, prisoners, and slaves had to do with contraptions, animals, and other inhumane methods.

As I watched from above the view that the roman people had of the sight below, a sense of strange quiet filled me.

Sure, there were people laughing and talking. Many took selfies and grinned at the camera. Thoughts came to my mind, wondering if they knew the history that this place held.

I just couldn’t shake away the feeling that this place held so much more and it should be given respect. There was a certain eeriness of the deaths and the people that had celebrated the deaths of others in the very same place.

For the next two hours, I took everything in. I took pictures and videos of the place wishing that I could capture what I experienced with a mere camera. I couldn’t.

But I prayed. I prayed that the martyrs would intercede for me and teach me how to be strong just like they were.

If there’s anything that I admire of them was their immense fortitude. I hope to be able to achieve that in the big ways and small ones.