"Their watching us"

This past weekend my husband and I finally took some time to do some grave hunting. Most of you know that I have an unusual hobby....Why do I do this? You may find this a strange hobby, but I love it! I love walking graveyards! I am a  Find a Grave volunteer. I love the peacefulness, the beauty of the grave markers, and the reward of helping others find their loved one's graves.

As we walked around this  past weekend  in the "Old Homer Cemetery", we were being watched...

look close...there was more than one watching us

They didn't seem too scared of us. They ran slowly around the back of the graveyard keeping their eyes on us as if to say they were there to protect those resting around us. A third, smaller set of eyes stumbled out last. Didn't look very old and just walked along the leaves...so peaceful!

The story Teller (why I do this)

 We are the chosen. My feelings are, in each family, there is one who seems called to find the ancestors. To put flesh on their bones and make them live again, to tell the family story and to feel that somehow they know and approve. To me, doing genealogy is not a cold gathering of facts but, instead, breathing life into all those who have gone before. We are the storytellers of the tribe. All tribes have one. We have been called, as it were, by our genes. Those who have gone before cry out to us: Tell our story.

The Recording of a Cemetery...by Thelma Reagan
Today we walked where others walked
On a lonely, windswept hill;
Today we talked where others cried
For Loved Ones whose lives are stilled.
Today our hearts were touched
By graves of tiny babies; Snatched from the arms of loving kin, In the heartbreak of the ages.
Today we saw where the grandparents lay
in the last sleep of their time; Lying under the trees and clouds -Their beds kissed by the sun and wind.
Today we wondered about an unmarked spot;
Who lies beneath this hollowed ground?
Was it a babe, child, young or old?
No indication could be found.
Today we saw where Mom and Dad lay.
We had been here once before on a day we'd all like to forget, But will remember forever more.
Today we recorded for kith and kin
The graves of ancestors past;
To be preserved for generations hence, A record we hope will last.
Cherish it, my friend; preserve it, my friend, For stones sometimes crumble to dust
And generations of folks yet to come will be grateful for your trust.