Willow Grove Cemetery

Willow Grove Cemetery 2013

The Willow Grove Cemetery is one of my favorite places on earth - And I mean that literally.  I spend a lot of time there as it is in the middle of the locations that I have to travel to for work and I often park there to take short naps or just to rest.  Many people find my fascination with cemeteries odd (creepy more like it) but they really are a peaceful place if you are not superstitious (which I am not) and Willow Grove is the most peaceful in my experience.

At each cemetery that we visit I ask the boy what he likes best about that particular one and he actually said to me (and I am not exaggerating at all here) he said that he really liked this one because he thought it would be a good place to "take a nap".

Willow Grove Cemetery 2013

Willow Grove has two sections in it: The front and the rear.  The rear section is the newer section and it is accessed at the rear over an old bridge crossing a drainage creek.  In my many times resting here I have seen deer, wild turkey, gophers, squirrels, and a few other things that I cannot recall at this moment walking along this ditch.  In June there is a very nice section that has wild strawberries growing on it, we missed it this year but we can't wait to get there next year.  And yeah, we don't have a problem eating wild strawberries - Even if it grows on someone's grave. :-o

2013

The boy is pictured standing on a very old section on the concrete edge of a family plot.  It is built into a small hill which gives it a little bit of a majestic feeling.

2013

Here he was resting in the shade sitting on the concrete edge of another old family plot.

2013

However, the rest was short lived as he found a stick and a branch that begged to be fussed with.  There is always something fun to do when you are only seven. ;-)

2013

There were plenty of old grave markers to see and take a look at but the boy is most fascinated with the markers that need discovering.

2013

While Willow Grove does not have a mausoleum it does have plenty of character as well as much to discover. 

While I do not have a picture of it, there is a section with little stones that have just a name and a single date on each.  There are quite a few of them and lie in no real particular order.  When we went through this section I asked him if he knew what they were.  He thought for a minute and said to me "They're babies."  

We talked about how many babies only survive a few hours out of mommy's tummy, how some are born dead, and still how others live only a few months.  I am impressed with his thoughtfulness as we consider the miracle of our lives and the fact that we were the ones who lived.

If you are ever in Armada and feel the need for a nap, we suggest getting over to the Willow Creek Cemetery - there's room for you.  But all we ask is that you keep your hands off the wild strawberries.