Fading like a Flower

I took the kids out to the gravesite last weekend to say hi to Grandpa and Papa. The sky was overcast and I got some great shots of the various stages of decay of the graves, as well as the fading silk flowers that try so hard to live forever. I was struck with the melancholy of the irony: mourners, filled with love, place bright, beautiful silk flowers. The do last for a long time, but eventually the colour starts to fade, the become unassembled or actually start to fray at the edges.

The graves are the same, even though methods of burial have obviously changed over the years. Once tall, haughty stones, they have lost their importance as they sink, and lean. The sealant on the stone gives way and the actual concrete starts to deteriorate. Some grave beds were actually caving in! Not a safe place for anyone, let alone my children.

I kept them in the van against their protests, and drove from line to line, scrutinizing the dates, the flowers, the state of decay. Who takes care of this place, anyways? I wonder . I may even make a half-assed attempt to figure it out. In the meantime I have a quirky and moody collection of various states of silk deterioration. A perfectly normal way to spend the afternoon...

Or not.