It's Tuesday (good thing I don't have an editor breathing down my neck...), time for some
reflection.
Today I am thinking about cemetery animals. Not pet cemeteries, which are a whole 'nother
cool thing, but animals that live in cemeteries. And cats will be featured, because cats.
But I'll give you an aside that there are movements towards letting people have their cremains
buried in pet cemeteries, along with their pets...
There are a lot of stories about cemeteries in England, for instance, with a resident cemetery
cat, who greets people who are grieving and make those people feel better.
Some cemeteries have turned into animal sanctuaries, like this one in Japan:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=2&v=Lvh0TPrEjOU
Cemeteries are a great place to see wildlife. Almost any animal can be found in a cemetery
somewhere. Deer, coyote, rabbits, little critters like mice and moles, birds. Think about it -
it's quiet, not a lot of humans, grass, places to make a nice burrow, bushes, trees, stuff to eat.
Pretty nice.
Laurel Hill Cemetery has cheeky birds that will sit on top of a stone and basically dare you
to mess with their home. Rabbits, fox (!), gophers. The fox families sometimes take over
abandoned gopher burrows.
Gophers can cause a lot of damage to the cemetery - their burrows and underground tunneling
can topple stones easily, and you really do have to be careful about the holes when you are
walking around.
Another side note - the gophers this year are FATFATFAT. Which, according to my Grampy,
means that the winter is going to be COLDCOLDCOLD. Put on a sweater.
There was a great story on CBS Sunday Morning some time ago (I hate you, Steve Hartman -
you always make me cry!!) about flag markers put out for Memorial Day disappearing and the
local veterans and the cemetery staff getting upset about it (understandably). They put up motion sensitive cameras and caught the culprits! GOPHERS! And the CBS crew put a little camera
down one of the gopher holes and got amazing footage of the den being LINED with flags. Just redecorating, guys!
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/burrowing-into-a-mystery-who-stole-flags-from-veterans-graves-in-ny-town/
I am always looking for the cemetery foxes in Laurel Hill. I've seen them twice, once jumping
from stone to stone. Amazing. Here is a pic from the LHC Facebook page (taken by Emma Stern,
her photos of the cemetery are fantastic):
https://www.facebook.com/EastFallsLocal/photos/a.1447805311967618.1073741961.719735274774629/1619753451439469/?type=3&theater
The new book about the cemetery, "Images of America: Laurel Hill Cemetery" has an adorable
photo on the last page of a fox family in the stones. Worth the cost of the book, if the book weren't
so great as it is!
http://laurel-hill-cemetery.mybigcommerce.com/images-of-am…/
There is a concert venue near to the edge of the southern region of the cemetery. It's one of those outdoor concert places where you can bring in your own picnics. So good eats in the garbage cans whenever there is a concert in the summer. And the fox community from LHC will go over after the concerts and choose their dinner choices, and BRING THEM BACK TO THE CEMETERY!!!!!
That cracks me up - Why?? Probably just quieter.
Full moon, glass of wine, you and some leftover chicken wings...
Then there's this one:
http://www.phillyvoice.com/watch-concert-laurel-hill-cemet…/
Add some entertainment!
But this rant started with something more serious. I ran into the wife of one of the cemetery workers
last Friday. I didn't know that her husband had been injured in November and only just got out of
the hospital.
This gentleman is one of my favorite people. He is a cemetery storyteller - he always teaches me something new (did you know that mausoleums used to be built at a slight tilt down at the back so
that liquids from rotting bodies could drain out? HOW COOL IS THAT???), makes me laugh,
stands up for what he believes in, and cares passionately about the cemetery, his wife...
...and cats.
He's one of those crusty on the outside and a big old marshmallow on the inside kind of people.
He is the one who takes in the cats who show up in Laurel Hill.
Because, yes, there are despicable people who just leave their unwanted dogs and cats in the
cemetery. Maybe they are not despicable but figure that the animals will be safer in the cemetery
than on the street. Maybe the cats and dogs get loose and take sanctuary there. Anyway, this one
person generally corrals the lost cats. And other staff members corral the dogs (this dog was
fostered and, I believe adopted by the fosters - note that she was an older dog, with a collar, but
they searched and could find no owner).
https://www.facebook.com/search/top/?q=Laurel%20Hill%20Cemetery%20lost%20dog
Ok, so my friend is now home and recovering from his injury, thank the gods. And we need to
step up and help take care of the cats and the foxes (also ones he loves to look out for). His wife actually works for the Women's Humane Society (America's first animal shelter, founded in 1869), since she is also an animal lover with a marshmallow heart. I once told her that I have all rescue
cats, and she cried. Nuff said.
https://www.womenshumanesociety.org/
The Humane Society actually hosts birthday parties for kids! All of the other mothers/fathers will HATE YOU!!
What could you do to honor my friend, who does so much for the cemetery community?
Become a member of Laurel Hill ($35!! - a bargain!), or donate - they take care of the animals
as much as us people.
Or donate money or things from the wishlist of the Women's Humane Society:
https://www.womenshumanesociety.org/wishlist
You can bring things to them personally in Bensalem, PA, or have them shipped directly from
places like Amazon, or contact me privately, and I'll let you know how to drop things off to me
in East Falls (North West) Philadelphia.
You can also contact your local animal shelter and see what they need. Old towels for cats -
when you are doing your pre-New Year cleaning. There. That simple.
So maybe you're thinking, where's your famous cemetery connection? The connection is that
animals needs cemeteries just as much as humans do. Even the ones we can't take home with us
share this special space with us. And they have their own story to tell. Our connection is so
strong, even in death.
I hope they get those regulations on being buried with our pets changed. Sooner rather than later.
We need their eternal comfort more than they probably need ours.
Especially the cats.
(Love you, B!! Get better soon!!! We need you!!!!)
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