A Haven of Rest in the Old Churchyard

We stopped by the old Benner Cemetery just off Shiloh Road. My husband did some jogging while I walked around and photographed gravestones. I instantly noted, upon arriving there, that the tombstones were white, practically bleached white like rattling old bones. This is news.

I posted a photo on Facebook and a friend who helps manage a local graveyard told me that Arlington uses something called D/2 biological cleaner to clean their stones and keep them white. So perhaps that is what they have done here. It sure made it easier to read the inscriptions, but it achieved a sort of ghostly effect, all those white stones shining.

I'd also like to give a shout-out to the giant swallowtail butterfly that met me on the green pathway in, met me on the green pathway back out, and then provided one final glimpse of itself as we got in the car to go. I may not have seen one of those since the day my big sister died. I did not get a single photo THAT day, and I didn't get a single photo on THIS one.

"Hello, sister!" I said to the huge, gorgeous butterfly, and I waved my arms to the high heavens, hoping my sister would see me down here and know I was sending out so much love!

Our soundtrack song is the Wailin' Jennys, with Old Churchyard. (Though there is no actual church on the premises, I thought the song fit.) Below is a verse from it.

I rest in the hope that one bright day
Sunshine will burst through these prisons of clay
And the trumpets will sound on the hills near and far
Will wake up the dead in the old churchyard
The trumpets will sound on the hills near and far
Will wake up the dead in the old churchyard