Graveyard Picnics
A Guest Post from My Daughter Hannah.
Yesterday the family and I went for a walk on the bike path behind our house. When we were getting ready, we did NOT expect it to be so hot. It was definitely August weather and temperature! When we started our walk we had a goal: we were going to walk to the graveyard down the street from us. It was pretty far, a two mile walk, and we didn’t think we would get that far. I really wanted to get there because I LOVE cemeteries.
When I was little Mom and I would have picnics in graveyards.
Anywho, we got on the bike path on the side that goes over the river, and as we started the kids were happy pointing out all the little animals. As it got hotter we had to take more breaks, and we all got a lot of sun! Once we were on the bridge, Patrick and Willow had to stop and watch the water. The sunshine on the water shone like diamonds, and you could see the pebbles and weeds on the river bottom.
When we finally got to the graveyard we drank all the lemonade, because we were really tired. We found a huge spider and LOTS of daddy-long-leg “spiders”.
We stayed for a while before heading home.
Willow was lucky, she got to ride in the stroller most of the way there.
She took turns with Patrick, but he walked more.
Patrick taking a break in the double stroller.
Cooper wandered around a lot. He liked drinking lemonade and collecting pebbles.
He kept trying to eat the pebbles.
The walk home was easier in some ways and harder in others. It was easier because we were going downhill and the sun was behind us, but harder because every one was exhausted and hot. Everyone was getting cranky and there wasn’t much shade because the sun had moved past the trees. My mom was so tired from pushing the stroller both ways so at the end I had to push the stroller up the hill to our house. When we got home we drank tall glasses of cold water and watched T.V.
I was so proud, because we had walked four miles in all!
Momma adds:
I feel the need to clarify. When I take my kids to a graveyard we do not go to the new areas, or even modern graveyards in general. We go to the old, neglected areas with stones toppling over and nary a flower to be seen. Just moss and leaves and sometimes tall grass. You wouldn’t see us camped out next to someone’s freshly laid out relative.
(For example- This little one we found was in the back corner- the newest date was 1957 and it no longer had access except via the bike path as the road leading to the rest of the cemetery was blocked off by brambles and underbrush.)
You would, however, see us weeding and tending to stones of people gone for a century or more. We are very respectful. We never leave garbage or trash laying about, and we not only pick up after ourselves but others who don’t care as much. We do not yell and run around, we do not climb on stones, we sit quietly and talk, and sometimes explore and see what interesting bugs or stones we can find. It is a peaceful place to be- that is why we like it.
you should have put mom in the stroller and pushed her up the the last hill! Picnics in the cemetery sounds like a wonderful idea and glad you all had a nice day.
Hannah Reply:
August 31st, 2010 at 12:46 PM
Thanks Deb!
Love,
Hannah
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