Every couple of weeks or so, my mom has a call with a cousin back in Poland. He lives in Krakow but an important topic of conversation on each call is the state of various tombstones in a village cemetery 2 hours drive north of the city. My grandparents and several other family members are buried there, and whether the tombstones are in good shape is information that travels regularly across the Atlantic. Cemetery culture is fascinating. My current wish is just to be dealt with in whatever way least impacts the environment; I wonder whether that will change over time.
There is something oddly fascinating about tomb stones and grave yards. We have two in our small country town of Chipping Campden. There is an engaging stillness not present anywhere else. They offer quiet, reflective time. Provoke curiosity about previous lives lived and of course present the final option that misses no-one out. For a species that seems to have increasingly lost the ability for stillness, time spent in graveyards should perhaps be on the school curriculum. Enjoyed reading this Sophia. Thank you. My own Substack last week was on a nostalgic trip to my childhood family holiday town, your quote really resonated.♥️
Oh, that was fun to read, thanks. I wrote something yesterday and included my donkey Dimitri and memories of my dog. On May 3 I wrote about spending some time in a cemetery, called "The View". I would be honored if you would read them. They are short.
So beautiful, Sophia! I always wonder about the lives of the people who you get a snippet of on a gravestone. What you said at the end is so poignant - it really is a privilege to be laid to rest in a place that feels like home. 💗
I lived a block away from Green-Wood for 19 years - thank you for the lovely evocation of it and so many other terminal destinations. Did you get to see Minerva hailing Lady Liberty from the heights? It’s a bolt of connection out of the cemetery and back into the wider world.
Hahaha - I was super self-conscious about saying Minerva, but nope, that is very overtly how she is labeled. She is a monument to the Battle of Brooklyn set atop an Altar to Liberty on the highest point in Brooklyn. It's one of my favorite spots in all of NYC - Green-Wood has a great blog post with the full story: https://www.green-wood.com/2012/minerva-facing-what/
More lovely than spooky. More life affirming than thanatotic. Sweet. I'll take the smell of fresh baked bread anywhere, anytime. Thanks , with bows, Sophia.
Ahhhhhh, Sophia, you caused a good ache in my chest.
The valiant pig will live on in my heart with Robbie Burns' "mouse."
nice Sunday read, Sophia 🙏🏼
Beautiful and evocative. So many fear this conversation
we should all — learn-to-embrace — our mortality 🙏🏼
I love the epitaph of the pig, friend to everybody 😍
Every couple of weeks or so, my mom has a call with a cousin back in Poland. He lives in Krakow but an important topic of conversation on each call is the state of various tombstones in a village cemetery 2 hours drive north of the city. My grandparents and several other family members are buried there, and whether the tombstones are in good shape is information that travels regularly across the Atlantic. Cemetery culture is fascinating. My current wish is just to be dealt with in whatever way least impacts the environment; I wonder whether that will change over time.
There is something oddly fascinating about tomb stones and grave yards. We have two in our small country town of Chipping Campden. There is an engaging stillness not present anywhere else. They offer quiet, reflective time. Provoke curiosity about previous lives lived and of course present the final option that misses no-one out. For a species that seems to have increasingly lost the ability for stillness, time spent in graveyards should perhaps be on the school curriculum. Enjoyed reading this Sophia. Thank you. My own Substack last week was on a nostalgic trip to my childhood family holiday town, your quote really resonated.♥️
This is such an open piece, I too thought the epitaph was ace. Great pics too to go with this.
Gorgeous, thoughtful writing. All of this is true.
Cemeteries are such great seeds for told and untold stories. Thank you for this, Sophia.
Oh, that was fun to read, thanks. I wrote something yesterday and included my donkey Dimitri and memories of my dog. On May 3 I wrote about spending some time in a cemetery, called "The View". I would be honored if you would read them. They are short.
“Lucy”
Trust and safety
Great writing Sophia, thank you.
I was just telling my son that we Greeks are the happiest fatalists on earth.
(And coincidentally, he lived for years in an apartment where he could see Greenwood from the kitchen window)
So beautiful, Sophia! I always wonder about the lives of the people who you get a snippet of on a gravestone. What you said at the end is so poignant - it really is a privilege to be laid to rest in a place that feels like home. 💗
I lived a block away from Green-Wood for 19 years - thank you for the lovely evocation of it and so many other terminal destinations. Did you get to see Minerva hailing Lady Liberty from the heights? It’s a bolt of connection out of the cemetery and back into the wider world.
ooh I love that!! No, we did not see that but I will look for it next time. And I assume you mean Athena, ahem.
Hahaha - I was super self-conscious about saying Minerva, but nope, that is very overtly how she is labeled. She is a monument to the Battle of Brooklyn set atop an Altar to Liberty on the highest point in Brooklyn. It's one of my favorite spots in all of NYC - Green-Wood has a great blog post with the full story: https://www.green-wood.com/2012/minerva-facing-what/
More lovely than spooky. More life affirming than thanatotic. Sweet. I'll take the smell of fresh baked bread anywhere, anytime. Thanks , with bows, Sophia.
Thank you for this kind note!