Memorial Day Weekend

This weekend instead of floating the river like all the other twenty something year olds, I helped out at the local cemetery. Mona Joy {who I’ve previously mentioned & will many more times} is the board leader for the cemetery. This isn’t your typical cemetery where everyone gets paid, this is a volunteer only board.

The Tuesday before Memorial Day, MJ parks her silver pickup under the big tree & collects donations. She sits out there  from 7am-7:30pm for 7 days straight. Let me remind you, she will be 90 next test & you would never know! She does have some regular help, but no one of the younger “me” generation will give up their time to go help. I told her to give me a day & I would do it. After all I love this lady like a grandma & she would literally do anything for me. The donations go to everything, mowing, cleaning, trash pickup, portable bathrooms, hanging of the flags, purchasing the small flags for veterans & etc. it’s amazing that they are able to maintain such a beautiful cemetery in this small town from donations.

I got to the cemetery at 11:30 today & stayed til 6:30. As I stood there under the tree with a notebook & pen waiting for people to drive to me & hand me a check– I learned so much about the people in the community I would have never learned if I had not helped out. This wasn’t just your typical small town gossip, it was sad news also. Like so many of the “neighbors” by the farm, had lost babies at a year old or under. If I hadn’t gone by & read the stones, I would have never asked questions about the families. Of course when everyone pulled to go the tree, they expected to see a familiar face, since I’m still new around here the first thing everyone said is “what’s your name?” Or “who are you kin too!?” I explained my story & of course to follow, everyone could pin point I was a California girl.

I also picked up trash & will go back on Tuesday to help remove the flags. In ten days, we will meet there again & load up all the flowers in the pickup to haul off. At the end of the day, I felt really good about helping out & even made a few new friends, even though they may be 4 times my age, they act the same age as I do, they just have more stories ❤️