Every now and again, tramping
over areas of the garden the pups and I seldom tromp over, I’ll come across chiseled
messages that inspire the soul, generate a prayer, cause a poignant tear, or
spout a generous guffaw that will last all the way home. I like those best. People who rest in the gardens usually died
with a good sense of humor; it is too bad that such sentiments cannot be carved
into headstones or name plates that indicate the decease’s tendency to laugh at
a funny situation a friend gets himself into, or giggle like children after a
practical joke or an out of place pun.
The most common messages show
devotion to God by the grave’s resident.
I don’t mind those, since I often read scriptures. But sometimes I wonder if the person under
the sod really went to church every Sunday, or if it is a case where the family
only offers the appearance of piety when the occupant occasionally held the
Good Book let alone read any of it.
On this evening’s walk, I made a
concerted effort to look for the unusual, the heart-wrenching, the profound,
the silly, and even the hilarious. Here
is my banquet of the sublime and the puerile, which may have fit the lodger
both in age and action.
On one long married couple, on
the back side of their headstones, family had added sayings which I believed
showed the common sense of the dad and the loving sweetness of the mom. His said, “Use it up, Wear it out, Make it
do, or Do without.” On her side it read,
“God couldn’t be everywhere, so he created mothers.”
On another couples’ stone was
something more touching: “May the God of
hope fill you with all the joy and peace as you trust in Him, so that you may
overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” Romans 15:13. Like I said, scriptures are popular, such as ‘Oh
that you would rend the Heavens…” Isaiah 64:1 or my personal favorite from Luke
24:5 “Why do you seek the living among the dead?”
Better yet are the ironic sayings
that usually the people ordering the stone didn’t quite get. The one which caught my attention belonged to
a young man who died at the age of 21.
The saying was simple but made me choke on the incongruity. It said, “David So-and-So, Daring and Lucky.” How lucky could he have been if he died at
such a young age? Was he so daring that
he did a stunt that landed him under the sod of Memory Gardens? See what I mean—ironic.
Another devoted mother’s ever-lasting
accolade read:
“Upright and faithful in all her
ways, a wonderful person to the end of her days,
a loving mother true and kind,
a beautiful memory she left behind.”
A gentleman had this engraved
upon his head:
“God took him home, It was His will,
But in our hearts,
He liveth still.”
Another couple’s children gave
this eulogistic quote: “Together forever with a lifetime of golden memories.” I’d would have put that on my own parents’
graves if I could.
A 59 year old semi-truck driver’s
homage was more practical and accompanied by a picture of a big-rig. It simply said, “On the road again.”
Another young man had this
honor: “His courage, His smile, His
grace, Gladdened the Hearts of Those who had the Privilege of knowing him.” I was told days earlier he had died of
cancer.
A few blogs ago a wrote about
Ethan, who always makes me smile, but I laugh when I read the back of his
headstone: “Our Little Worm….It’s a long
way to the top if you want to Rock N’ Roll.”
On still another couple’s read
granite headstone reads the familiar poem:
“Love bears all things,Believes all things,
Endures all things,
Love is forever.
Love never fails.”
The postscript (the best part) lets the passer-by know the most important part: “We’re good.”
I shall leave you with my
favorite.
Whenever I am too depressed to
function, I find Marguerite’s stone—I know exactly where she lies—next to her
son who died two days after her own passing.
This is a woman after my own heart.
Above the dates of her life it reads:
“I told you I was sick.”
“I told you I was sick.”
I would have believed you, Marguerite. Perhaps I might have even taken you to the
doctor.
I’m still laughing.
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