A New Graver Is Born
Shanna Riley March 23rd, 2007
When I told my good friend, J., about graving he was - to my delight and surprise - quite excited. He begged me to call him so that he could accompany me on my next trip out. I then found out there was a certain famous person buried in a nearby Baton Rouge cemetery, and the two of decided to see if we could find him.
I'm not usually one for hunting down "famous" graves; the grave of the common man and woman is of much more interest to me. The mystery of an unknown person's grave beckons to me every time - sometimes with a very powerful pull - to find out who and what the person whose name is etched on the stone was. Yet, it's still a delight to try and find anyone's grave, so we made an afternoon trip out of it.
I'm guessing J. hadn't had the opportunity to spend much "leisure" time in a cemetery. Truthfully, not many people - even those with an interest in cemeteries - think to go and just hang out in one! He was like a kid in a candy store, oohing and ahhing over interesting graves, snapping photos, and reveling in getting to do something he'd obviously wanted to do - but thought he was crazy to even consider.
"Everyone at work today thinks I'm crazy and morbid," he wrote me in an email the next morning, "but I don't care - I love it! Let's go back on Monday."
A new graver is born.
I can't truly explain the appeal of a graveyard to some people. I suppose it's a combination of the mystery and intrigue, the delightfully creepy and deliciously morbid. I think it also has something to do with the ability to accept death as normal rather than something to avoid and not think about. In a cemetery, you are surrounded by death - it's impossible not to think about - even if you're just there for research and picture-taking.
I'm fairly confident J. will become a regular graving-buddy.
- Graving Trip
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