As I watched the flames tear through the Notre Dame Cathedral and listened to the news commentators talking about the 850-year-old building, I recalled a book I read entitled “Pillars of the Earth.”

Many are familiar with its author, Ken Follett, who in my opinion is a master when it comes to historical fiction.

This particular novel of Follett’s is set in the 12^th century, and the story revolves around the building of a Gothic Cathedral.

What I found fascinating in Follett’s book and that I recalled as I watched the iconic Parisian building burn, was the incredible amount of effort and labor it had taken to construct such a beautiful structure.

Not only were the architectural feats amazing, especially since there were no computers or high tech calculators used nearly 900 years ago, but the sheer manpower it must have required to build such a massive church.

In the novel, Follett goes on to describe in detail how workers quarried stone from the ground and then master stonecutters would chisel and shape it for use.

In many of these descriptions as to the construction as well as the architectural terminology used, I had to use Google in order to have a better understanding of the images.

One architectural feature I recall looking up was flying buttresses.

And from aerial shots of the Notre Dame Cathedral, I could see these arches the author spoke of as they were now exposed and naked with no roof protecting them.

The tragedy of this iconic cathedral burning has certainly caused sadness for those living in Paris and for many around the world.

However, in the midst of this sorrow, there seems to be hope.

As of Wednesday, it has been reported one billion dollars have been pledged for the reconstruction of the damaged cathedral.

It seems in times of crises, humanity does come together.

For those of us living in Vicksburg, last weekend we experienced our own disaster as three tornadoes tore through the city.

In these storms, many sustained damage to their property. Fallen trees blocked roads and thousands lost power.

But in this time of loss, we, too, witnessed our own coming together of sorts.

Neighbor was helping neighbor, volunteers from across the state turned out to assist with tree removal and cleanup, while Entergy crews worked tirelessly to restore power.

I don’t know about you, but in this age of political turmoil, it has been encouraging to see that goodness still exists.

So on this Good Friday, we should all be reminded that even in the midst of great loss, Easter comes.

Hope is alive and miracles continue.

Happy Easter!