When I was in high school, I took a field trip to France. I had the privilege of seeing Notre Dame Cathedral. I walked inside and was amazed by the architecture. I was so saddened today to watch the news of the Notre Dame Cathedral fire unfold.

“The fire atop the landmark Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris leaned to one side before it collapsed amid the smoke and flames of a massive fire consuming the historic structure.”
“The cathedral was begun in 1160 and largely completed by 1260, though it was modified frequently in the following centuries.
On 15 April 2019, the cathedral caught fire, suffering significant damage, including the collapse of the entire roof, the main spire and substantial damage to the rose windows” –

“The cathedral contains one of the oldest surviving wood-timber frames in Paris, involving around 52 acres of trees that were cut down in the 12th century. Each beam is made from an individual tree. For this reason, the lattice of historic woodwork is nicknamed “the Forest.” –
More about the Notre Dame Fire…
“Four hundred firefighters were mobilized in order to combat the flames.[10] Firefighters said that dropping water from an aircraft would not be done as it could compromise the structural integrity of the church.
[8]Emergency responders worked to try to save the art and religious artifacts kept in the Cathedral during fire-fighting efforts. At the time, no known deaths or injuries were reported.[11]
Flames engulfed the upper part of the cathedral including its two bell towers and the central spire,[12] with the roof collapsing and the spire falling into the nave.[6] Paris mayor Anne Hidalgo has described it as a “terrible” fire.[13]
A cathedral spokesman said “the [whole structure is] burning … there will be nothing left. It remains to be seen whether the vault, which protects the cathedral, will be affected or not.”[6] A spokesperson stated that the entire wooden frame would likely come down and that the vault of the edifice could be threatened as well.[14]” – Wikipedia
I”f you look at a photo of the cathedral from before the fire, you’ll spy a rooster on top of the spire (which sadly seems to have collapsed during the fire). This rooster was not a purely decorative bird.
In 1935, three tiny relics—an alleged piece of the Crown of Thorns and some bits of Saint Denis and Saint Genevieve (the city’s patron saints)—were secured inside the metal bird’s body. The idea, the story goes, was to create a sort of spiritual lightning rod to protect the parishioners within.”- mentalfloss.com
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