Tragic history on Moscow’s Red Square

My husband was on the Red Square a day ago and now back in Kyiv, Ukraine where things have momentarily settled down politically speaking.  The greatest tragedy of my not being beside my husband in this photo is obvious to me. However, one could either Photoshop me in or presume that I pulled the trigger on the camera.  Not to be.  I reflect that I was on this same square over 30 years ago in 1976 and little did I know I would be so enamored by Ukraine’s history that is inextricably tied together with Russia’s history.  Off to the right is the tomb where Lenin’s shell is still housed after these 85 plus years.  I remember standing in a line just to see this madman’s exterior, for some he was a “god,” but for others Lenin tried to eradicate God Almighty.  St. Basil’s Cathedral, to the left, was commissioned to be built by very talented architects by Ivan the Terrible.  He rightfully earned that title because when the cathedral was complete he asked his architects if they could create something even more beautiful.  Their response, in hopes to please their emperor, was YES.  The spiteful man punished them by having their eyes poked out so they would never see the beauty of their own creation again.  Supposedly, St. Basil’s cathedral was to be the most beautiful.

 Yes, so much tragedy and so much blood has been shed in Moscow.  Perhaps that is why it is called “Red Square.”