This weekend was Memorial Weekend, and my family spent it as
we spend many weekends, not just holidays, walking through graveyards. Here in the south the holiday is still called
Decoration Day because it common for an entire family to load up a picnic and
visit the local graveyard where their deceased loved ones are interred. It is a big deal for families to decorate the
graves with fresh colorful flowers. 
Haunting graveyards is a well-trampled pastime for my
family. We are all big history buffs and
although we are not so very close now, we all maintain a strong connection to
generations long gone, the story of how each of us came to be a part of the same
family tree. Yet, this strange hobby
extends past the graves of family members we have never met. It is not unusual for us to seek out and
visit old cemeteries with interesting and beautiful carved headstones. An older grave site is usually peaceful and
calm, making it a nice place to visit to get away from the chaos of the world.
So, I wonder, does anyone else love reading old tombstones
or exploring old crypts, mausoleums or vaults?
Or, is this simply one of those weird things passed down in a genealogy
obsessed family?
