From: Claudette Rogers <[email protected]> This was sent to one of my genealogy list and it really made me think... Claudette <<Saw this poem in a letter to the Editor of the West Side Leader(suburban Akron, Ohio), and it pretty well sums up why genealogists have such a soft spot in their hearts for old cemeteries. The Recording of a Cemetery by Thelma Greene Reagan Today we walked where others walked On a lonely, windswept hill; Today we talked where others cried For Loved Ones whose lives are stilled. Today our hearts were touched By graves of tiny babies; Snatched from the arms of loving kin, In the heartbreak of the ages. Today we saw where the grandparents lay In the last sleep of their time; Lying under the trees and clouds - Their beds kissed by the sun and wind. Today we wondered about an unmarked spot; Who lies beneath this hollowed ground? Was it a babe, child, young or old? No indication could be found. Today we saw where Mom and Dad lay. We had been here once before On a day we'd all like to forget, But will remember forever more. Today we recorded for kith and kin The graves of ancestors past; To be treasured for generations hence, A record we hope will last. Cherish it, my friend; preserve it, my friend, For stones sometimes crumble to dust And generations of folks yet to come Will be grateful for your trust. Thanks to letter writer Peter Schueler, Sr., for caring enough about abandoned and neglected cemeteries to include this in his letter. It's powerful. Paul Morehouse>> !^NavFont02F04E10007NGHHKE222EC