Cemeteries are not only beautiful, but they’re also full of stories. Stories told and stories waiting to be finished.
One can learn so much about a person by what’s inscribed on their gravestone. The courageous man who died fighting for our freedom. The woman who was a mother, daughter and keeper of her family. The baby boy who joined the world for only a day, but brought so much joy to those he touched.
The other day while strolling through a local cemetery, there were a few gravestones that stood out to me. They told stories of lives that I could envision and touched my heart with their incredible sweetness.
“War Veteran, Son, Father, Grandfather, Storyteller” I can imagine a boy sitting on his grandfather’s lap for hours listening to his stories of war and bravery. A boy who has now grown up and will one day share those same stories with grandchildren of his own.
“Mother / Daughter” In this shared grave site is a mother waiting for her beloved daughter, who will one day join her. From birth to death and beyond they will forever be side by side. Not even death can separate them.
“Sweethearts Forever” Underneath these words rests a man and woman whose love can never be denied. A love so strong that only one word is needed to describe it – forever.
All of these people have a story of a life lived. A life that continues to make an impact, even on those, like me, who they never met.
One day we will all have a gravestone story. What will ours say?
Me - Who am I? 
I am fascinated by cemeteries. I find them endlessly interesting and peaceful. What will my gravestone story be? I’m not sure, but hopefully something like, “No regrets”. š
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I completely agree. For those reasons, they are one of our favorite places to visit. I like the idea of your gravestone story. To have no regrets makes a happy life indeed. I wish we could all end that way.
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This is so beautiful! I used to be afraid of cemeteries…I spook easily lol. Then while I was in college I took this crazy summer job as a door to door sales person and ended up in Biloxi, Miss., and I found myself going by this cemetery frequently. I finally took some time out of my day to wander through and really wondered about the stories of the folks laid to rest there…many of the names were street names in the city so clearly they had some impact. It was fun/interesting to wonder about the stories. I learned to see the other side of cemeteries. I still spook easily and my mind will play tricks lol, but there’s another side now too. š
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Same here. As a teen I was a terrified of them, but like you, I love them now. They are so fascinating. It’s neat to see gravestones with names of local streets and businesses. Those people made a big impact in our cities. There is s much to learn, see and be felt during a visit to the cemetery. So many stories there.
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You speak my language MWAI!!!!! I have always loved cemeteries. I imagine their stories and their lives. When I go through I say their names as I read them, just so they feel remembered. Just so their existence is felt again. I do this mostly in the older or neglected cemeteries we visit. Great post. And reminder.
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Oddly enough, I say their names too (with the added Mr. And Mrs.) especially to the fresh sites. The old cemeteries are some of the most interesting of them all. Their stories, their dates of birth/death, and even the style of gravestone are all so fascinating.
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I love them. I actually wrote a ‘book’ once and included a story within the book that touched on this. Just so I could include this kind of cemetery appreciation. š It’s about thinking about the people that once were.
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I love wandering through cemeteries, especially old ones and reading the headstones. I actually have written what I want inscribed on mine(as morbid and weird as that might sound) I don’t have children, so did not want it left up to ? I keep it with my will. Each letter of my Hebrew name begins a sentence that describes me. If someone one day will stop to read it they will get an idea of who I was hopefully
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What a wonderful idea that is. As morbid as this is about to sound, a headstone like that is one that I would love to read. I don’t think that thinking about and planning for death is morbid. We’re all going to die one day and it’s best to be prepared.
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You got it! š
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And thanks for saying it’s one you’d like to read!
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You’re welcome. š
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Oh I do love a cemetery! Doubt I’ll have a gravestone, will probably be going up in flames, but if I did it would most likely say ‘well…she tried…!’ š
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You could still have your ashes buried, even if it’s only a portion of them. That way you could have your very humorous words inscribed on it. Can you imagine reading that on someone’s headstone? I have to admit, it would definitely get a laugh out of me.
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Thank you, you just jiggled a memory for me about a post I was going to write about death and cemeteries. I don’t believe I would have a headstone, but if I did, it would probably go something like….wife, mother, (hopefully great-great-great-grandmother), stubborn woman. Her perseverance finally paid off.
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Ha! That would be one of the most honest headstones in the cemetery. Wouldn’t it neat if we all told the truth on ours? I wonder what mine would say… probably predictable, routine. She had this day planned down to the minute. š
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I’m still trying to decide if I want a gravestone at all. Being as I’m 3,000 miles away from my place of birth, it might be fun to leave a line in stone for those (like you) who wander looking for stories. But… Actually I should have my name added to my mom’s gravestone in Florida, even if none of my ashes ever make it back there.
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