I’ve never liked going to cemeteries. I’ve always viewed them with a bit of fear. It was in 1981 when, as a young, stupid senior, I was with my mom as she put flowers on an old friend’s grave. I looked at all the graves and joked, “Ha ha, you’re dead!” while I danced around.
My father passed away shortly after that and was buried in the same cemetery. For a while, I harbored a suspicion that it was my fault.
Needless to say, I didn’t go to cemeteries much unless I had to. After attending a few funerals, I let go of the childhood fear and learned to respect cemeteries for what they are. They are beautiful places for the living to remember the love of those that have passed.
But today, July 2020, I learned another blessing that cemeteries provide. They are landmarks to the history of the area, the people who lived there, and the kind of lives they led.
Kathy Mountjoy, a lifetime resident of the area, gives a wonderful, thought provoking tour of Ivy Hill Cemetery. As we pass the engraved stones we learn about the people who reside under them. Kathy shows pictures and describes what they did for the area. She adds spice by repeating a little gossip or lore that accompanies their memory.
Kathy also explains a bit about the layout as a “rural cemetery”, the types of headstones, the symbolism used and Iconography, a fascinating study in itself.
The Ivy Hill Cemetery tours are held at 10 a.m. on the second Saturday of each month from April to October. Stop on by for a look into the past.
For more about Ivy Hill I’ve included some links below.
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