Remediating Ruins

Megaliths are so interesting. I can’t believe how much mystery there is on planet Earth. I am amazed any time I learn about how the ancients moved such huge stones and built giant monuments. Sometimes I look around at the architecture and just think it’s somewhat puny. Though high-rises are intimidating and our concrete and brinks last, they don’t hold much meaning. We don’t really need an enormous, timeless stone structure but if we could build one, what would it be? I think about the statue of Liberty as being the last giant statue to ever ‘need’ to be made for/in the U.S. – why was it made? As a gift from the French to Americans, to represent Liberty – free from oppressive restrictions by authority. That’s pretty amazing. I wonder if ancient civilizations also built statues and huge monuments to signify ideals, symbolize friendship and show that or maybe it meant from wherever the structure is in view you are under some jurisdiction. Whatever the reason, it takes a lot to build and there is a notion of everlastingness that goes into it.

We see megaliths all over the world but not so much in North America. So much was built over quickly – it’s only been a few hundred years. But there are ruins of ancient stone structures and mounds all around the U.S. – I was reading about some of them today. I want to visit them all one day – I love ancient ruins, but what to do with the not so ancient ruins? I already see what our ruins look like – vacant buildings and polluted land. The city barely takes care of its own ruins let alone cares about the history of ancient civilizations. When I see those old industrial buildings downtown, I wonder how many people touched its doors, what was made there, what did it look like 50-75 years ago? Before it was developed, what was here? How could it all be so overlooked? These acres of abandoned land are like the megaliths of our time.. Can anything be done about them? Everyone is preoccupied with trying to survive – money, the movement of populations and all the constant strife that goes along with it, people just get caught in the times. We’re constantly establishing our place and legacy. It’s been a long time coming, so much has happened. Can you imagine the next 500 years? I wonder if we will ever find a way to remediate our ruins or if they are meant to be ruined… maybe only until history acknowledges them.

Megaliths last thousands of years. I wonder what it must have been like to work on building the structures. Why would they ever want to leave things in ruin on purpose? How often did they need to remediate a space? Usually anything of archeological significance found is preserved and becomes a resource. Our present society exists around its own ruin, but while blighted sites preserve a lot of history, they aren’t being used as a resource.

Recently I heard in the news that the city I live in is facing an “epidemic of violence” and 30 children had been murdered by November of last year. This year already there have been many shootings and lots of crime… it’s hard times almost everywhere post Covid but I think Memphis’ problem is amplified by the amount of blight there is. The environment is toxic in some places – the litter, poverty, abandoned houses, the parks are bland and unkept. It’s very sad to see and it’s no wonder there’s a lot of anger and crime, devastation, confusion even. It’s ridiculous how difficult it is to rebuild, even something as simple as greenspace. Things were left to ruin for 30+ years, but I think currently, there’s more and more attention and effort going into at least identifying the problem through surveying.. hopefully we’ll find a way to speed up the process of remediation. Anything can be done if it’s a priority.

I like to get inspired by megaliths and ancient civilizations because it helps me realize how good we have it now as well as how we could improve. We could respect one another’s knowledge and heritage better, or at least respect the land we all share and live on now.

The only mound I know of and have visited in my city is down by the Mississippi River in a small area called the Chickasaw Heritage Park. I found it by browsing satellite imagery and had never heard of it before or learned in school that there was still a Chickasaw Indian mound anywhere. When I went there I learned so much … I walked there from Main Street and wow, the blight, broken glass, Hershey’s factory smell, and the highway made it… interesting.. I was with my now husband, we had fun trying to get back to his car. The mound itself was awe inspiring… there is just SO much history in this city. The neighborhood around the mound is rich with history too. There are also some old trees around, wildflowers, and so much more …

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I wish we could take better care of these historical places and see all the possibilities of the spaces we now are leaving in ruin. I think about when I’ve travelled and gone to Austria or other places in Europe and I’ve never been anywhere that has more blight than my own city. There has to be a way to turn some of these sites into greenspaces for phytoremediation, native plants, urban gardening, park and recreation. The violence and crime is always talked about in the news, and we already know it’s linked to the blight issues. I think people have to realize for themselves that they’re capable of rebuilding. If the ancients found ways to create megaliths or monuments, we surely can find a way to remediate old industrial or commercial sites.

It was wild how everything paused during Covid last March. It’s officially been one year since my Spring Break got extended. The Great Pause so it became, showed me at least that civilization as we know it can change from one day to the next. It takes a long time to build and rebuild, but just an instant for things to be left in ruin – and sometimes we don’t know for how long.

Life keeps going though and whether intended or not, we leave our marks on the world.