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Sunday, July 31, 2022

Gallimaufry#42

Just a gallimaufry of photos ...
"Just as the pure white lotus flower blooms unsoiled in muddy water, our lives, which are supremely noble, can continue to shine even amid life’s harshest realities." - Daisaku Ikeda



Japanese garden

THE HARDEST THING TO LEARN IN LIFE IS WHICH BRIDGE TO CROSS AND WHICH TO BURN



FROM THE TRAVEL ARCHIVES

 A Diana Princess of Wales Memorial Walk plaque in St James Park
The memorial walk is a 7-mile (11 km) long circular walking trail in central London, England, dedicated to the memory of Diana, Princess of Wales. The walk passes between Kensington Gardens, Hyde Park, Green Park and St. James's Park in a figure-eight pattern, passing five sites that are associated with Princess Diana's life: Kensington Palace, Spencer House, Buckingham Palace, St. James's Palace, and Clarence House. It is marked with ninety individual plaques, each of which has a heraldic rose etched in the centre made of aluminium.

Dad's final resting place
columbarium in  St Michaels' church
An imposing statue of St Michael the Archangel vanquishing Satan stands in front of the church
Sharing the same church grounds is a Catholic graveyard.
The children's graveyard is right in front of the columbarium.
Every grave marker has a story to tell.
Little Joseph  lived for two days before he was called to The Lord.
 His mom joined him in heaven two days after.
The inscription makes this little boy’s death all the more poignant.
Baby Gerald lived for 37 days. I was born in the same year. He would be 60 today.
Little Lucy did not reach her 1st birthday
Little Agnes did not make it past her third birthday
Weathered and chipped, the gravestones with their fading inscriptions are evident that they have been here for a long time. I am guessing the parents of these departed children have passed on too and they all are now eternally reunited in heaven. I wonder if anyone still visits these graves.
Interestingly, I learned that there is a difference between cemeteries and graveyards. Cemeteries are usually larger and not associated with a church while graveyards are smaller and connected to churches, usually residing on the church grounds. The terms are used interchangeably these days 

Prayer for Eternal Rest (The Requiem Prayer)

Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord,
and let perpetual light shine upon them.
May the souls of all the faithful departed,
through the mercy of God, rest in peace.
~Amen~

Requiem aeternam dona eis, Domine.
Et lux perpetua luceat eis.
Fidelium animae, per misericordiam Dei,
requiescant in pace.
~Amen~

My Corner of the World

58 comments:

  1. Such a pretty Japanese garden! I didn't know the difference between cemeteries and graveyards so thank you, Veronica, for explaining it here! I like to walk old cemeteries and the like just to look at the gravestones and ponder the lives they had lived or in the case of the little ones, the life that was snatched too early from them to live. Great assortment this week of pictures Veronica!

    betty

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  2. Lovely lotus flower! I wish they could grow in my garden, but it's too cold here in the winter.
    The japanese garden is very beautiful.

    Have a nice week ahead, Veronica!

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  3. I didn't know the difference between a cemetery and a graveyard until I read this post, Veronica. So poignant to see the graves of the little ones. Makes me so thankful for the health of my three grandchildren.
    Blessings!

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  4. Very nice places and flowers. The prayer is very popular in Catholic Italy. My grandmother taught it to me.
    Enjoy your new week ahead, Veronica!

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  5. statue of St Michael the Archangel looks great....
    thank you for sharing photos and interesting explanations ....

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  6. I did not know the difference between a cemetery and a graveyard. Thanks for that. I can't contemplate the children's graves too much or I'll start to cry.

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  7. Lovely lillies, the Japanese garden is so tranquil looking, it's purpose is working. I do like seeing cemeteries from around the world and some of the sculptures you see are beautiful

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  8. Dearest Veronica,
    What a lovely resting place for your Dad; such a beautiful Columbarium.
    Both of us prefer not to be buried and placed in a graveyard.
    Here there mainly are cemeteries, no graveyards, except some old ones.
    The lotus flower is such a regal bloom!
    Hugs,
    Mariette

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  9. Bellas flores y me gusto la estatua de arcángel. Te mando un beso.

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  10. Wonderful post and pictures. It's so sad when children die shortly after birth. I am sure they are at peace in the light of God! Have a great week, take care, hugs, Valerie

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  11. Dear Veronica,
    I like the saying by Daisaku Ikeda very much - and your photos of the lotus flower and the beautifully designed Japanese garden too!
    When the opportunity arises, I like to walk through cemeteries and let the gravestones tell me stories. Some - like those of the deceased children - are very sad. It may be that no relatives visit the graves anymore, but other visitors come and send positive thoughts to the departed souls - I think there is something beautiful about this thought.
    All the best from Austria and have a good week!
    Traude
    https://rostrose.blogspot.com/2022/07/mallorca-reisebericht-teil-3-tag-7-bis.html

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  12. Life brings many lessons, some hard. We have to learn and maybe this way we can overcome all suffering and live in the fullness of love, regardless of the distance of time and space and, who knows, the various planes of existence. I really liked the photos and the text interspersed with reflections. A hug, Raquel

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  13. I am moved by the photo and quote of the lovely lotus flower! Your dad's final resting place is lovely and the statue of Michael is amazing! I can't visit cemeteries or graveyards anymore, but what you've captured in photos is amazing and really impacts me as to how fortunate we are to have lived as long as we have. Thanks always for sharing a little piece of your life through your wonderful photos!

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  14. We have a Japanese garden in the neighbourhood too. It's really beautiful. Love the lotus bloom.

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  15. Beautiful. Regine

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  16. i had many emotions, joyful, inspired, sadness over your beautiful post today. Sadness for only a moment because this overwhelming love for those little ones and their families kind of welled up... Nice post today. Thanks for sharing the water lillies, Princess Diana's walk way... and just really enjoyed it all.

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  17. Beautiful photos, Veronica. Thanks for the explanation of the differences between cemeteries and graveyards.

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  18. It's not hard to understand that artists have been drawn to water lilies throughout the ages.

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  19. I've always used graveyards and cemeteries interchangeably. Thanks for sharing the differences between them.

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  20. I'm always fascinated by old cemeteries. I find them a source of comfort and peace.
    Thanks for sharing at http://image-in-ing.blogspot.com/2022/08/magical.html

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  21. Hello,
    Beautiful photos, I love the lotus flowers. The cemetery statues are beautiful, it is sad to see so many graves for young babies. Your Dad has a lovely final resting area. Thanks for linking up and sharing your post. Take care, have a great day and happy week ahead.

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  22. Thank you for sharing these lovely photographs Veronica. The cemetery looks beautiful and the flowers are lovely.

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  23. The water lilies are excellent, thanks Veronica.

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  24. You never fail each week love these and another interesting gallimaufry

    Have a gallimaufrytastic week👍

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  25. Such beautiful photos and so many stories to tell!

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  26. The gravestones are beautiful and sad.

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  27. Such wonderful photos and that memorial walk is really special, as is all of those memorials.

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  28. A sad but also uplifting pot. Thank you Veronica.

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  29. Hello Veronica,
    What an impressive shots of that memorial walk. Wonderful.
    The water lilies are very nice.

    Many greetings,
    Marco

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  30. Thanks for the definition of cemeteries and grave yards. It makes sense reading the difference although in modern times I guess nearly all of us are buried in cemeteries.

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  31. interesting post. I find it very serene.

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  32. What beautiful photos of the lotus blossom and the Japanese garden!
    Carol
    www.scribblingboomer.com

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  33. Que las flores de loto blanca sigan floreciendo sin mancha y brillando para que la vida nos sea menos dura amiga. Preciosas flores y esculturas. Gran post Verónica.
    Buena semana.
    Un abrazo.

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  34. Such poignant photos all. The Princess Diana walk is one I would love to take.

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  35. The children's cemetery brings tears, but also gratitude that we live in a time when those graves are more rare. My parents ashes are interred in a part of our hometown cemetery that had at one time in the past been reserved for an expansion of the infant's cemetery. But with modern medicine and care, that expansion was thankfully no longer needed and so the cemetery board turned it into an area for cremains.

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  36. It is so sad to see how short a life was lived on those grave stones. The Japanese garden is beautiful

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  37. Beautiful pictures! The lotus is gorgeous.
    xoxo
    Lovely
    www.mynameislovely.com

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  38. The white lotus is gorgeous! Good quote you have with it too.

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  39. The waterlilies are absolutely beautiful as are the photos of the park. The children's cemetery is interesting but very sad.

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  40. ...I find many childrens grave here, many have small lambs on top.

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  41. A beautiful walk through the times.

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  42. Once again, you have magnificent photos. Those lotus images are especially beautiful. Just the other day I was looking at my England photos and had one similar to your Diana photo in St. James Park. What a fabulous park. I didn't realize, though, the extent of the walk or that it passed by so many significant places. I'll have to check that out when I return.

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  43. Beautiful garden and beautiful cemetery. It's sad when the little ones die so young.

    Love the water lilies.

    Thank you for joining the Wordless Wednesday Blog Hop.

    Have a fabulous Wordless Wednesday. ♥

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  44. Those garden photos are just beautiful! We have water lilies on our lake that look similar to the lotus blossoms.

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  45. Oh! I didn't realize the difference between a graveyard and a cemetary either! And yes to knowing whether or not to burn bridges. Sometimes you think you should, but it's so hard to know.

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  46. I did not know the difference between a cemetery and a graveyard, so thanks Veronica Lee for the explanation, which makes sense when I think of the ones associated with churches that I have seen. I also walk through either one and read the headstone inscriptions as some are quite poignant, especially when they are for such young children.

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  47. Those are some moving stories from the graveyard. (I'll be thinking before uttering the words graveyard or cemetery, from now on. Thank you. :))

    Thank you also for taking us along the Memorial Walk.
    And the Japanese garden looks lovely. They always succeed in creating that calm and peaceful atmosphere. :)

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  48. What a beautiful park! ... Love that wooden bridge.
    Nice post :-)
    Regards!

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  49. I find children's graveyards (or cemetaries) incredibly sad. Heartbreaking.

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  50. Fabulous photos, I love that flowers and bridge :)

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  51. Often when my husband and I are out on trips we visit cemeteries. They are so calm and peaceful and carry so much history. Especially the old parts with many old and beautiful tombstones.

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  52. That garden and lotus flower look amazing. I'm sure that you had amazing time visiting it.

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  53. Oh my friend, I got tears in my eyes when I saw the statue of Saint Michael. He is my beloved Saint, and we recite the prayer at the end of every Mass in the Catholic Church. The cemetery has always been a peaceful place for me. My dad took me there at a very young age when he visited his parents, and taught me to respect the grounds. So sad to see the sites of the little children that are so young. I like Diana's plaque, it's lovely and special. That little bridge is so charming. The Japanese Garden is so pretty and peaceful. The lotus flower is beautiful, and I love the "lotus flower" quote.

    Happy August to you, my friend.

    ~Sheri

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