Story of Two Frenchmen

Several years ago I visited Egypt. It was incredible! The site of the Sphinx and the Great Pyramids was absolutely stunning. You can’t help but be overtaken by the sheer genius of the projects. Without modern machinery men had left an indelible mark on the world with creations that have lasted for thousands of years.

When you see such great accomplishments that have been made so many years ago, we are often encouraged and motivated to do something ourselves that we’ve never done before. To leave a mark on the world. Two Frenchmen had that very same feeling when they visited Egypt in 1856. While they didn’t know each other before their journey they were on a course of destiny to meet each other in a country so far from their home.

Both men shared how the sight of the marvels of Egypt had moved them. One of the men, Ferdinand, shared his own dream of a modern day marvel that he could leave behind. Shipping lanes that traversed the oceans had to travel around the southern coast of Africa to travel east to west. The voyage took thousands of miles to complete. If there was a way to connect the Mediterranean with the Red Sea through a man-made canal the trip would be reduced to a startling 105 miles! Most considered Ferdinand’s plan somewhat entertaining but it wasn’t taken very seriously.

But here in Egypt, another Frenchman had taken his plan quite serious and suggested a contribution of his own. He would design a lighthouse that would be twice the size of the sphinx. It would stand at the entrance of the canal welcoming travelers traveling eastward as a beacon of western civilization. Both men agreed their dreams deserved to come true.

In 1859, Ferdinand won the approval of the authorities and began the project that lasted ten years. Now we know it as the Suez Canal. On the other hand the Frenchman that Ferdinand had befriended in Egypt spent years designing his lighthouse for the canal. Countless sketches and models were constructed until at last a design was satisfactory.
The design was quite original but he had one problem. The one thing he needed most for his lighthouse to be completed was the funds to build it. And they simply weren’t there.

Two dreamers. One with a fulfilled dream and one so close but so far from ever being realized. I’m sure he was devastated. To have come this far and not acquire the funding would’ve been be disastrous. Embarrassing to say the least.

But things did change. Several years later another country inquired about the need for a design from the Frenchman. He accepted and was finally able to deliver his dream lighthouse for the world to see. It wasn’t where it was designed to be but then again it was a good place to be. Today, you would agree this was a much better place for such a lighthouse.




That lighthouse, twice the size of the Sphinx, that was supposed to be a beacon of western civilization welcoming voyagers as they traveled through the Suez canal would find another home instead. The designer was Auguste Bartholdi and the lighthouse stands in New York Harbor and is a sign of freedom for all that travel there from around the world, The Statue of Liberty.

Defining moments. Sometimes they land where we didn’t plan them to.