Cemetery Date

I love this new fuchsia and white patterned shirt. I bought it in July at a Salvation Army store for a few dollars, but Sunday was the first time I had a chance to wear it because we've had such hot temperatures that anything with a long sleeve didn't seem appealing for a few months there. You may notice that I'm still in my "wear as many colors and as bright of colors as possible" for the three days of the week that I'm actually allowed to wear colors. I'm pretty sure that won't be changing anytime soon.

You also may have noticed the slightly odd background location of these pictures. Angel and I discovered on our honeymoon that our favorite free date is a walk through a cemetery. I enjoy piecing together the life stories from the bits of information found on tombstones. It can be a somber time, because sometimes the dates and names stick with me. The stones for children who only lived a few days or years always tug at my heart the most. On Sunday I found stones for couples that had been married over 60 years before the first spouse died. Then, one stone we came across at the same cemetery was for a husband, a wife, and an infant son. The wife died at 22 years old, on the same day as the son. The husband lived several decades longer.

Angel likes finding features on certain tombstones that he likes, and we discuss what we'd like to include on ours. Do we want to include our wedding date? How about a picture? Any specific Bible verses or unique quotes? His latest idea was to include our professions on the stone. Cemeteries, especially older ones, are often beautiful, peaceful places for a walk, and we enjoy learning a little about the people who came before us.

What do you think? Is it really that weird to go for walks at cemeteries?

Sometimes Angel likes to purposely not smile when I'm taking a picture.