The Bellybutton of the World

At Michelangelo's Campidoglio with the equestrian statue of Marcus Aurelius

The first full day here in Rome was walking for miles through the historic center. Suz is great to do this with, because she doesn’t mind the walking and is fascinated by the history. And I am surprised how much I remember from my school days here. The dates and the names of Emperors, Gods and Popes have become fuzzy but the anecdotes and especially the ‘cause and effect’ stories from history are still remembered. Thank you Professors Gabe and Ken. Apparently I was listening in class.

In grade school, I had never enjoyed History as a class subject- I never found the need of rote learning of dates and names, who really cared? But history class in Rome consisted of walking the streets of this ancient City and learning the meaning in the stones and bricks. The Roman Forum may seem a puzzling collection of debris that requires a lot thought to reimagine. But add the names of Gaius Marius, Julius Caesar, Augustus Caesar, Saint Peter and the depth of what you see is profound. Here, in about a square mile, is the nexus of Western thought- the notions of democracy, the Republic, law and Judeo-Christian values have passed through this point. The foundations of the way I think, the way I reason, has had this venerable City in which to gestate and flourish.

There is a cylindrical pile of brick and marble in the Forum; it could easily be lost in the numerous other configurations of brick and marble. It sits near the great rostrum, where the finest orators of Rome would deliver their great speeches. This cylinder is the Umbilicus Mundus, the ‘bellybutton of the World.’ It was from this point that all distances from Rome were taken to the far reaches of the Empire- Britain, Spain, Egypt, Romania, Turkey, Iran. ‘All Roads Lead to Rome?’ Well here is where they led. I think it also measures our connection across time to this place. Twenty-five hundred years of history is not easy to grasp, but touching it, standing in it connects you to your culture like no other way. So it’s no surprise that I love and remember Rome like a fascinating dear old wise relative with quite the story to tell.