Cemetery Horror

What happened with the grieving family in the link below must have been horrifying and entirely plausible based on a couple of my real-life experiences.

A. My Grandma in Northern California was buried atop my Grandpa who had died a few years before she did. Was it a cost-cutting measure or a lack of space?  Anyhoo, you can be sure I peeked for any sign of him before her casket was lowered.

B. There was minimal space between plots at the two  Overcrowded Cemeteries we visited within Paris, France.

C. Here are pictures from my sister-in-laws recent burial in Illinois. You can see the outline of her husband's vault right next to hers. We joked that he'd be reaching over and knocking to check on her before long.

Is cemetery space becoming more and more of a premium -- akin to the overcrowding problems of China and India??

Link:
--> An Extremely Disturbing Picture

Unexpected Sights in Paris

Cemetery cats who looked sleek and content.  They hid in the  closest open (hopefully empty) grave  or hole whenever we approached. Eeeeeek!

Riding in an empty 1st-class car on  the  TGV .  Only one other person showed up -- and this was well into our 4 hour trip! Visual proof of Europe's lower birthrate among non-Muslims (2.2 versus 1.6 children per family)??

Too. Much. Ugly. Graffiti.

Beggars, sometimes whole families of them, on the most well-known  and supposedly most beautiful boulevard in the world,  Avenue des Champs-Élysées

 Cemetery built below street level (Montmartre Cemetery)

The overcrowding of said cemetery 
(20,000 burial plots over 27 acres)

At Père Lachaise Cemetery:  Fernand Arbelot,  musician and actor who died in 1990, 
wanted to gaze at his wife for eternity.  Oh, really?!! 

Delicious macarons at McDonald's.  Why not here in the USA?

Increasingly common: camouflaged soldiers, 3 at a time,
with their weapons  ready

Barren landscape

There are two sections which never fail to catch my eye after we enter the cemetery. One, to the left, is the Muslim section (the sign says so). Invariably, there is a mourner or visitor present. Many of their plots have fresh flowers or plants; even balloons, baskets and toys. More than once, I've seen someone holding a hose and watering the sod (where are the spigots located, I would ask myself). And as mentioned, there is at least that one, ever-present mourner or visitor. On our way out of the cemetery,  there is yet another person driving in, making a beeline for this popular section. I have named their area The Hot Spot or The Happening. Muslims seem to truly miss their loved ones and are fervent to show their love and care.

Almost directly across from the Muslim section is a place that I've named The Neglected Ones. The keep-it-plain-and-simple area. What a contrast --- no flowers, no gifts, barely any memorial plants or trees.  I've never seen a visitor there. Just marker after marker of seemingly forgotten people. Is this an older section? Or a bargain-bin, no-frills-allowed spot? Maybe it's a section especially reserved for indigents? I don't know the answers; but what a contrast between this and the popular Muslim area. 

My parent's section is farther down. There are still flowers, plants, and other evidence of caring visitors, but it's taken on a lonelier air. Keeping in mind that we visit on weekdays, I've noticed that there is almost never anyone around except us. If this is the case even on weekends, I can't help but fear that the neglected/forgotten section, to the North, has started to creep-in and begin the process of claiming this area for its own . And this is barely 1.5 years after my Mother's death.

I am forgotten as a dead man out of mind: 
I am like a broken vessel

- Psalm 31:12

**************

Case study, or Do Not Hinder God

it's all pretend

I had been looking for my Oliver Peoples sunglasses for a few days.  I could not remember the last time I wore them, but I approximate it to be the 28th of June.  The eyeglass case was empty after that, and remained empty --- till today.

We were done at the Dentist's office at 12:15 pm.  Before having lunch at Joy Yee's, we headed to Rosehill Cemetery for a quick look, and to water the sod and flowers.  Eagle-eyed FJE spotted my sunnies a few feet away from Mom & Dad's plot.  It was on the plot of someone named "Martin". The sunglasses must have fallen off of their perch on my shirt when I bent over to straighten something.  How many days ago was that??!!!

I consider this event a miracle, the goodness of God manifested in my life. The location of the glasses was beyond my reach and my control. On top of that, (A) the glasses were exposed to the elements.  They went through several warm/humid/sunny days in the open air, and it rained at least twice. They somehow evaded being crushed by vehicles; and, no one took them. God became the "case" or protector of my lost sunnies. They remained in perfect (used) condition with not a scratch on them! (B) I had convinced myself of their proximity: they were either in the house or in one of our vehicles (Wrong! They were 30 miles away, blending with the sod).  So, checking back at the cemetery was not on my radar screen. Looking at their lost-and-found department, in case someone had turned them in, would not have even occurred to me.

I need to allow God to do all of my worryings for me. My usual m.o. when I lose something of value to me is to get nasty.  To get bitter. To get even nastier.  This time, I wasn't anything other than oblivious to the danger.   Thus, I did not hinder God (with my sins of the wrong attitude, wrong words, and plain-ol' wickedness) from performing His miracle.  God was free to take care of the problem for me.  All because He loves me through the Lord Jesus Christ.

How awesome is that?!

71.9.3.18

Graceland , Part 3

Ready for more of Chicagoland's colorful history of its rich and famous citizens through this world-famous tourist spot/cemetery?  Here we go....

Potter Palmer & Bertha Honore Palmer(pic courtesy of Graceland.com)

Potter Palmer (1826-1902)  & Bertha Honoré Palmer (1850-1918). Erected 1921.

I knew a little bit about Potter Palmer through his partnership with Mr Marshall Field.  I had  heard of and seen the Palmer House Hotel, but I've yet to step into its lobby, LOL. Click  here  for more details on their lives.  Surrounding the two huge sarcophagi, beneath the floor, their loved ones are also buried.

Daniel Hudson Burnham (1846-1912)

Pic courtesy of Graceland.com

Make no little plans, they have no magic to stir men's blood."

--DHB

Daniel Hudson Burnham (1846-1912), was a world-famous architect and city planner, Click  here  for more detailson his life and accomplishments.  He's quite famous in the Philippines as the planner of  Baguio City , Philippines.  I love the fact that he is buried on his own ISLAND (a-la Diana, former Princess of Wales).

Inez Clarke

Inez Clark (1873-1880) died at the age of six. She is usually our last stop before we exit the cemetery.  Her monument always makes me feel a little sorrowful, especially after I've had children.  Click  here    for more details on her life and gravesite. 

O, death where is thy sting?  O grave, where is thy victory?

The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law.

But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ

~ 1 Corinthians 15:55-57

Just a few blocks away from the cemetery is Wrigley Field, home of the Chicago Cubs!  Go, Cubbies!!!

The Friendly Confines!

Graceland Cemetery, Chicago

We wanted to take our out-of-town guests to a place unlike any they’ve visited in the past. Plus, it was FREE (a plus in this economy). What better place than the historic & beautiful Graceland Cemetery?! It’s the final resting place of many of Illinois’ wealthy, its politicians, & its movers and shakers. Here are a few, among many, of notable gravesites (Model is B-I-L):

...for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return  ~ Genesis 3: 19

First stop: Eternal Silence by sculptor Lorado Taft, 1909, for hotelier Dexter Graves' (!) plot. AKA, "The Statue of Death". Per graveyards.com: A robed and hooded bronze figure stands before a polished black slab of granite, its face partially hidden by one arm.

pc: wikipedia

Below, is the gravesite of lumber merchant Henry Harrison Getty's wife, Carrie. Getty chose Louis Henri Sullivan to create this tomb. Per graveyards.com: Sullivan's Getty tomb has been called "the beginning of modern architecture in America," and was designated a city landmark in 1971 by Mayor Daley The Getty tomb is in the shape of a cube, with the roof overhanging the walls slightly. Sullivan's trademark arches are above the doors and windows, concentric arches with radial spokes. Octagons fill the space around the arches on the upper half of the walls. An intricate bronze gate with floral and geometric patterns, another Sullivan trademark, stands in the front of the equally ornate door. A plaster cast of this doorway won Sullivan an award at the Paris Exposition of 1900.

Below, family gravesite of one of Chicago's wealthiest man, Marshall Field. The monument is called Memory (its finish reminds me of Frango Mints, LOL). Mr Field was the owner of the highly successful department store chain, Marshall Field and Company (bought out by Macy's)

Below: I've always been fascinated by this tombstone for Bruce Goff, architect. I think the polished stone is gorgeous! Just a few feet away is the simple, pretty-much unadorned, polished slab (granite?) that marks the final resting place of world-famous pioneering master of Modern Architecture, Ludwig Mies van der Rohe.

Tombstone of dancer, Ruth Page

I had never noticed the gravesite below until now. From his site, I can assume the following: he was in the medical field because of the Caduceus symbol on his stone marker, he was musically-talented, and he was much-cherished by his family. This gravesite is right behind the family plot of the Armour Family (of meat-packing fame).

My thoughts: This place does not spook me, by God's grace. Death is a part of all of our lives. I am reminded, when looking at the gravesites, that we are dust, and to dust we shall return. I am thankful that the Lord Jesus Christ of Nazareth has conquered death, and is alive forevermore. My hope is in Him, for to be absent in the body is to be present with my Lord (2 Corinthians 5:8).

Our Dear Friend, Muriel: Absent in the Body, Present with the Lord

Today, our dear Muriel Ford was buried at Bluff City Cemetery, Elgin Illinois. Her desire was for a simple service, nothing elaborate. Even her coffin was simple & unadorned. Jared was one of the pall bearers. Muriel's hope was in the Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, this was a sad, yet JOYFUL farewell. I will miss her praying for me. I will treasure her last letter (February, 2009); and her beautiful, hand-sewn dolls (Raggedy Ann and Raggedy Andy) will be cherised.