The Emotion of Love

When I lived in Providence I almost always passed by the Carrie Brown Memorial Tower on Benefit Street where I lived and marveled at the emotion that erected such a landmark with that forlorn statement over the door, Love Is Strong As Death. For a long time I thought that was the only memorial Count Paul Bajnotti left for Carrie.

Years later, I was catching a train (or trying to) from the Providence train station back to New York when I arrived from some local dive just late enough to see my train departing. It would be two hours before the next, and I did not want to re-enter the same den of sin I had come from with my luggage, so I--in the most gentile manner imaginable--put out a cloth, made a little pillow with my bag, and flattened out my Shantung silk dress out in front of the station. I was as dignified as possible under the circumstances, but shortly after placing my head down read the letters, " B-A-J-O-N...." That meant only one thing to me and I jumped up to read, "Dedicated in loving memory to his wife Carrie Brown by Paul Bajnotti of Turin, Italy". This was before Providence had been revived into the Renaissance city it is today and the park was overgrown, the fountain unused. It was as if I have found The Fountain of Youth! Yet another monument by the husband (I would find others later). Love; it ruled all of us and shortly thereafter set about setting up a Society dedicated to it (discussed later).

But, when I see the bell tower, the fountain, and the urn on the south wall of Beechwood, I sigh a little bit and say, Love.