Revelations_as_a_Spiritual_Lie_De_Memoire

Revelations as a Spiritual Lie De Memoire In the center of the Yerba Buena Gardens in the SOMA district of San Francisco is a noticeable memorial to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. aptly entitled Revelations.1 After careful introspection, it instilled in me the very epitomization of what a lieu de mémoire is. Not only that, but I found that the particular memorial I chose is a highly spiritual lieu. The word “spiritual” can have various connotations. In the Random House College Dictionary there are 24 definitions for spirit and 10 definitions for spiritual. What makes Revelations so unique and awe-inspiring, is that it embodies every one of those definitions. Even more ironic, is that the ninth definition for spiritual-- an emotionally expressive religious song of a type originating among blacks in the southern US -- is a lieu de mémoire in itself. Revelations utilizes three of the five senses-- sound, vision and touch. First, is the massive waterfall.2 Standing 22 feet high and for a length of 50 feet, the resonant roar of the water drowns out the surrounding hustle and bustle of the city. Behind the cascading falls is a cavernous walkway where 12 glass plates mémoire, de, lieu, 12, revelations, lieux, pillars, memorial, glass, waterfall, water, spiritual, plates, others, life, land, god, six, promised, place, monument, king, experience, even, tree, through, throne, three, symbolic, shared, river, revelation, quotes, personal, person