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The fog hid everything.
Gently rising out of the grassy field, the cross was simple. Constructed only from two fallen trees, there was no gold leaf or cherub design, no saints carved into its base or silver crown ringing its top. The only adornment was prairie grass and a few scattered wildflowers. The simplicity of this cross near the small pueblo Girón, is the reason I choose to pair it with La Basílica del Voto Nacional in Quito. Completed in true neo-gothic style La Basílica is everything the modest cross is not. Ecuador is a country immersed in religion and these two crosses represent the dichotomy that takes place in religious manifestation, not just in Ecuador but around the world. Ecuador provides a look at the blatant division between institutions that can afford to display their faith through gold leaf and large frescos and individuals who construct a single cross on a hill wrapped in fog. Essentially neither display is better or worse, however, I cannot help but wonder who all the grander and splendor is for? Large cathedrals were often placed over indigenous sacred sites, a physical attempt by the missionaries to hide the old and force in the new. I know little about the history of the hill near Girón, perhaps it already bore sacred meaning, but I do know that the solitary cross partially hidden by fog speaks with more respect than an ornate cathedral bathed in sunlight.
