It's Bill, 4/20/25: Bill's Easter

Roots in a Quiet Country Church

Well, we can’t get older without forming some habits. When I was in school in Bolton, CT, I went to The Bolton Congregational Church, a very traditional country church founded in the early 1800s. I went to Sunday School, went as a parishioner, and even got married there. And drifted away.

Easter Traditions, Then and Now

Easter Sunday is Easter Sunday. Dying eggs, Easter egg hunts, Easter clothes, sitting through services, family dinners, visiting friends and family. All fine, but away I went. In the last 40 years or so, I unknowingly found my own Easter tradition. Cemeteries. I love cemeteries.

A Childhood Spent Among the Stones

In previous blogs I’ve mentioned I grew up in a cemetery. Our bus stop across the street was a colonial cemetery. A neighbor’s father was an undertaker, another’s father dug graves with a 6’ spade. We played in the cemetery, jumped on vaults before Digger filled them in. He gave us M&Ms to get us out—which only encouraged us to jump back in.

Easter Pilgrimage, Year After Year

Starting 40 years ago or so, I started visiting cemeteries on Easter Sunday. Some of them I was familiar with, most new to me. My favorites are old, country cemeteries—just left as is, usually low or no maintenance, no longer active.

Most early cemeteries were high on a hilltop, good gravel below for digging and drainage. The deceased were buried with their heads facing East to face the rising sun and the beginning of a new day.

Silent Stories and Sacred Spaces

The gravestones are slanted, lichen-covered, full of history. Name, dates of birth and death, usually stating Husband, Wife, military service. Alongside them may be other family members, all with their own message.

I find peace knowing these souls, with their own life story for us to honor and respect, send a strong message for all of us. We come, we go, into eternity.

A Walk Through Time in Lubec

Last year, I researched the list of Lubec cemeteries. Some active, most not. On Easter Sunday, I visited 4 in Lubec and North Lubec. Being out and about, I got distracted and hiked a couple of nearby trails.

It’s Spring, a good time to enjoy and contemplate the future. A good time to Be.

This Easter Sunday, more of the same for me. Some cemeteries I’ve never seen, some old favorites. They are never the same. As time passes, we get older, and Life goes on as we travel through the cosmos.