Learned this week that the Cemetery Wild Flowers that grow up each year around the headstones of Mom's Cousin Laurla and her children are called Yellow Hawkweeds.
It is apparently a relative of the dandelion. I don't feel so bad about mowing them down now.
Memorial Day always makes me think of Mom's cousin Alvis Justice. He was her double first cousin like his brothers Olen and Aaron.
Alvis died during the Korean War. He was captured by the North Korean Army and became a POW. He survived the "Tiger March" only to be murdered later at the "Sunchon Tunnel Massacre".
He is buried at the Wilson cemetery near Dad's sister Maggie.
Uncle Teet served in the Army at the same time and fought in the area of the Sunchon Tunnel later in the conflict. He was much luckier though and came home safely.
When Jennie drags me up on those steep hillside cemeteries, she props me up with a stick to keep me from rolling all the way to the road at the bottom of the hill. I worry sometimes that she needs to use a stronger stick.
I can hear the conversation now..
Journiee - "What happened to Grandpa, Daddy?"
Matthew - "Gravity, Honey. Gravity finally got him."
During a break in the rain Jennie and I got decorating done at Fords Branch, Dow Brooks and the Ratliff Cemetery. Hopefully we can get to Wilson in the next day or two.
Here are a couple of photos from today.
The hillside graveyards seem to get steeper and higher every year. I don't know how many more years Jennie will be able to carry me up there to watch her work.
Some of you may remember this old photo of Great Grandpa George Stalker...
I ran it through an AI program and got this...
Amazing stuff. I can't recall ever meeting him so I don't know how accurate a depiction of him this is.