I was walking along an ordinary street when I suddenly came across a cluster of flower shops selling beautiful bundles of flowers with splashes of the brightest colors that contrasted against the dingy sidewalks and storefronts. In addition to the colorful array of sunflowers, daisies, carnations, and roses, there were life-sized stuffed animals and balloons. Some shops even had music and strobe lights to get shoppers in festive moods. It seemed that a banquet hall or a club was nearby, but as I walked a bit farther down the block, I saw it. A cemetery was right next door.
I walked through the ornate cast iron gate and was greeted by a guard. I asked if it was OK to walk around the grounds. He politely nodded and allowed me to proceed. A vast expanse of graves that were over a hundred years old stretched out before me. Stone statues of Mother Mary were hovering over the departed to keep a watchful eye over the graves to ensure the spirits had escaped the earthly bodies only to be sent directly to heaven. The expansiveness of the cemetery blocked out the sound of the street noise which provided for a tranquil locale. The serenity was disrupted only by the whirring of the leaf blowers by the landscapers who kept the grounds trim and tidy. There was a glass chapel in the middle of the grounds. Its floor-to-ceiling windows granted worshipers a view out to the tombstones while allowing passersby a view into the solemn ceremony to commemorate the life of the dearly departed. The graves possessed built-in vases where flowers could be displayed as a sign of the life that was now buried under the engraved marble bearing their names. Indeed, the cemetery didn’t smell of death, as the fragrance of roses wafted in the air to fill visitors with an uplifting feeling of life. In fact, there was a joyful atmosphere when families came more to celebrate the lives of their loved ones than to mourn their loss.
woundedcat 