Greenwood (Meaning; Green Wood)
Greenwood (Meaning: Green Wood)
Hello!
I am not writing a post about a specific person, or animal. No, I am writing about a place I visited recently with my family and a friend. The Greenwood Memorial Terrace in Spokane Wa. This humongous cemetery is full of old graves and beautiful architecture. I have never been to a cemetery with mausoleums before, and they were beautiful. An interesting name on one was the last name of Dessert (Meaning; To Clear). There were veterans from several wars, from the Spanish-American War, to WWII. There were so many names on these graves, it got me thinking. I decided to write this blog post because of those thoughts, which I will share now.
Our names are our legacy. They are how we are remembered. Our name is a link to those who live years after us. There were so many names, but no two names were the same. There weren't two Gertrude (Meaning; Strength) Desserts. Each name is memorable, and no matter how long you lived, like the brief 9 years of Sarah Bertha (Meaning; Princess of Light), or the 93 years of Benjamin Morse (Meaning; Son of my Dark Right Hand), people will read your name hundreds of years after you have passed away. I personally find older headstones, with their ornate beauty, another prover of my point. People cared back then. They wanted people to remember them years after they were gone.
One that I especially remember is the name of Esther S. Watson, for the date of birth on her headstone. She was born in 1809, and lived until 1891. She was 82. Her headstone sits in a shady corner of Greenwood. She does not call attention to herself. Her headstone is ordinary, and you can easily pass her over. But, she is remembered. No, we do not know her, nor will we ever. But we remember her name. We remember her meaning. You are reading this right now, and you know that she was here for a brief 82 years of the thousands of years the earth has been here. I do not remember her for dying, but I remember her for the day she came to this world.
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Esther S Watson (Meaning; Star Ruler) The oldest birth date in the entire cemetery
There was even a headstone that must have decayed beyond saving, because one of the "headstones" was a mere laminated piece of paper. 
Oscar A. Blakeslee (Meaning; Divine Spear in the Clearing) will soon be forgotten. Like my long lost relative I did a post on awhile ago, he will disappear. His relatives will wonder where he is. While the nonendowed section is beautiful, I hope that few have to be buried there. It is a place where people will be lost.
I will remember so many names from that cemetery, from the name of the WWII veteran to the nobody buried in the nonendowment area. Names are what we will be remembered by. Your gravestone is going to be the last piece of you in this world. Archeologists, after we are long gone will find your gravestone, and know who you were. You won't have a nickname like the nameless Viking burials being dug up in England. People many years in the future will know who you are, because of your name. Your wonderful, beautiful name, recorded in marble or granite, never to be truly forgotten.
I won't ask about names you've found in cemeteries. I want to ask you about your name. What message do you want your name to shout out? What, in other words, do you want your name to mean to people long after you are gone? Make everything you do have that meaning. Nobody is remembered for what they wanted to do. People are remembered for doing great things. Let me know what you want to be known for, in the comment section below. I would love to hear from you.
Until another name pops up!
Maximilian M.
The Nonendowed Area
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