SABRINA'S LONDON DIARIES- An American Girl's Adventure in Londinium: Cemeteries in London

Saturday 27 March 2010

Cemeteries in London

One of the many things, of the many things,that I loved about London is the parks. Some of these parks, residential or otherwise have gravestones. I have to admit it's a bit eerie and Goth, and I kind of like it(that's what happens when a mind is raised on Gothic Literature like The Bronte's Wuthering Heights and Jane Eyre, which I've read 4 times and loved every page of it and plan to read it again in my old age).I wanted to wait until Halloween to post this blog, but a bit of spookiness in the middle of Spring never did anyone any harm. Besides,looking at graves reminds us of our mortality, and a dose of that every now and then,without being moribund and Gothic-like, is in my humble opinion,a sign of good mental health.

To me,the fact there are gravestones in parks is what makes London so charming and of course, so intereseting. Everywhere you go,everywhere you walk,just as soon as you walk out of your flat door,and sometimes, when you least expect it,you have history staring at you in the face: mews, old alleyways, parks, pubs, cemeteries, city streets, canals,underground tunnels, Churches, palaces, museums, secret buildings, the underground, and all sorts of tantalizing and delectable gems of London's ancient past waiting to be discovered.The fact that Londonium is such an old city,(dating back to the Romans)it has an ABUNDANCE of graves, it can't help it. In the twenty first century,most of the cemeteries are so overcrowded that they have to put them alongside the kids play area(which is fine by me, if the kids don't mind,why should I).The interesting juxtaposition of the old gravestones, alongside the newer swing sets, I find most poetic and thought provoking.

These are some photos I took right next to the SGI( Soka Gakkai International)Buddhist Center in Russel Square. This little residential park was located just next door, so after a meeting or a meditation, I would go to the park for a minute to gingerly contemplate the seasons,drink my tea and have a chat with the locals and bribe them into taking their photo for this blog that you are reading.