September 20, 2003

Remembering Michael Kidron

I went to another celebration of life service. It was for Michael Kidron, someone I'd never met. Brian is a computer tutor for Nina, Michael's ex-wife. Michael was born in South Africa to Jewish Zionist parents, moved to Palestine when he was 15, then to England to do a doctorate program at Oxford. He was an active Socialist, a writer and the founder of a socialist publishing company. It seems that my father and he had some very similar qualities; environmentalists, charasmatic, good speakers and leaders. A big difference was that he remained close with his ex-wife Nina and their three children, even after second marriages. It was a very intellectual crowd attending the service, held at the British Library.

The British Library is a beautiful modern building, inside and out. It has lots of high ceilings and natural light inside, as well as nice galleries and private alcoves. It is located right next to another beautiful building, the St. Pancras Railway Station. It's a Victorian Gothic building and part of it was originally the Midland Grand Hotel built between 1868 and 1876. The hotel closed in 1935 because upkeep was too expensive and the space was used instead as railway offices. In the 1980's it failed its fire certificate and has been empty ever since. We got to go inside and explore the building because it was an 'Open Day' weekend. On these weekends, some private buildings are opened to the public for viewing.