The "Today" programme on Radio 4 this morning covered a new policy by CABE (Commision for Architecture and the Built Environment) to promote cemeteries as a place for relaxation. Yes, I know this is Halloween but it's true, honestly. If you listen to the Radio 4 interview they are even trying to have cafes at cemeteries in order to encourage people to go there. They want cemeteries built for the living.
Now I admit I quite like wandering around old cemeteries. In fact I would be really interested if there was a fact sheet with some information about the previous lives of those buried there. I am not sure it's exactly a place for a picnic however. The majority of the inhabitants are taking relaxation a step further than I want.
2 comments:
i thnk it's a great idea. cemetry's should be for renewal and celebration and remembering, places of beauty and intrigue and poart of our everyday mornality - liek a trip to the park, exactly as they said. we fence off, and wall off, and gate off, death way too much in out culture. cemertires are part of our living heritage, they take up a vast amount of sapce that needs to be enjoyed and cared for, not left for the occasional loyal family member to visit their loved ones well tended grave in spendid isolation amongst acres of depressio and mourning and sadness....
"must go and visit grannies grave'...'but it's just so damn depressing up there I can't face it."
me, i wish my gran had been buried in a buzzing lively park, and not stuck out on her own in what amounts to an empty field which people only go to to visit other graves and to be sad....
she would have hated it.
I agree with the start of your comment, yes they should be a place for celebration and renewal (vets generally see death as being a way of release, a way forward, and not a "bad" thing as such (that's probably why we have the highest suicide rate among profession!)). As a culture we are too scared of death.
But I also think that cemeteries are a place for reflection, and that is difficult if there is a football match taking place over your parents grave. On my travels it is not unusual for me to stop at a cemetery and wander around but I do that because they are peaceful and that helps us come into contact with our self, with humanity, and with our gods.
A place of reflection does not need to be a place of sadness.
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