You might have seen this photo already in the Peace in Bayeux post, but I thought it deserved its own place.

For some reason, it is this one statue, hidden in a corner of a tiny garden, that comes to mind first whenever I remember Bayeux. Not the cathedral, not the famous tapestry, but this piece of rock brought to life by a master artist whose identity has remained a mystery to me throughout the years.

Whenever I remember this statue, a feeling of absolute serenity washes over me. She always seems more alive to me than anything else, myself including. She seems to stand there, eternally patient, waiting to share the calmness that radiates from her.

I know nothing is eternal, but her presence just might be, spanning across time and space from time immemorial to a time long after we are gone. It’s as if whatever brought our Universe into being resided in her, reassuring us that even when everything disappears, something will still exist in the nothingness that will span the spaceless, timeless non-existence

I often wonder how many other tourists stray under the gate of black wrought iron and into this garden to be in the presence of this statue. I hope many get to meet her, but quietly, so that her eternal peace isn’t disturbed.

If you’re ever in Bayeux, try to find her… and say hi.

— Pav