Something to ponder...

Have you ever been saddened or sobered by the sight of an unreadable tombstone that marks a (presumably) long forgotten grave?

It was a rainy, cool day when I came across these well-weathered headstones. They were both pretty much unreadable, and covered in moss, since they were in a shady part of the cemetery. I couldn't help but feel bleak upon looking at them. As I thought about it more, I realized I was sad because these people had lived, died, and been forgotten. No flowers marked their graves, and even their names no longer existed for others to read. To take away someone's name is a powerful thing, at least to me. I didn't know their history, contributions to the community, etc. It was almost as if they had never existed. 

As I look back at these pictures tonight, they no longer make me so disheartened. I've come to the conclusion that the weather-worn tombstones are a mark of something other than sadness. It is undoubted that the people who rest under the aging tombstones in cemeteries everywhere were much loved and cherished by someone. It can also be imagined that these people came to their gravesite to visit and wished they could be together again. Therein lies the answer to why I don't feel sad anymore. The unadorned, forgotten grave means that the mourned and the mourner have been reunited once again. My ideas about death lead me to believe that we have souls that reunite with people we love after we die. So, now when I see an old tombstone, I'll just remember that the only reason its so worn and seemingly abandoned is because this person and the people they love have all passed on and are together again. The fact that their grave is aged and over taken by the elements does not matter as long as the person was loved, and is spending eternity with the people who loved them.