Ghost of Posted September 14, 2007 Share Posted September 14, 2007 Hey, I was getting close to Yellowstone (I think) and there were a bunch of crosses along the road. Nothing more just cross markers. Was that for people who'd been killed along the winding road or some other form of memorial? Anyone know? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
england Posted September 15, 2007 Share Posted September 15, 2007 a young lad was killed when his car crashed into a tree the local authority cut the tree down to a stump and a few days later his father had carved a cross in the stump and varnished it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bang Posted September 15, 2007 Share Posted September 15, 2007 I ran a cemetery for a number of years. Grief does weird things to people, and some people neeed memorials and reminders to help them move on. (BTW we didn't allow certain types of things to be placed on graves... trying to to not let the place get tacky. It's supposed to be a place of respect, not a yard sale.) I pay attention to the memorials, but only because i have insatiable curiosity and a fast mind... i notice EVERYTHING it seems. (I'm one of those people who can pick up details in an instant,, one look and it's in my head.) I do notice that most of the roadside memorials don't last terribly long. After the initial grieving process, most people let them slide. Once they start looking too shabby, State Highway usually removes it. Some people do keep them up nice.. i know of one on Rt. 4 as you head up through Owings that has been there for years and years.. clean gravel bed, new flowers often enough, and a weeping cherry tree. (Although the tree died. Cherry trees are hard to keep.) There's another one on Rt. 4 as you head into Dunkirk,,, down the long hill and back up towards Ward rd.. that one is for an old neighbor of mine. Just a white cross with "TreVon" on it in mailbox letters. Someone earlier said that it sends them into deep introspection... I can say that occasionally it does to me, too. I see the name on the cross, and this is where this person died. Who was he? Who was his family? What has happened to them since? What happened to him? As he passed this spot, did he know he was about to die? And in a few minutes it's gone. But for those few minutes, i think about a life that isn't mine, and I realize how lucky I am to still be continuing on. I guess it boils down to just allowing people the space they need to get themselves back together after a tragedy. As i said, I used to run the cemetery (Southern Memorial Gardens in Dunkirk.) When a death happened, I was the guy who made the arrangements for you. I can say this. It was a tough job, but I gained a tremendous amount of compassion for people. They and their family are no different than me when it all comes down to it. And losing a loved one is a very hard thing to go through, especially a young person in a car accident. And believe you me, Route 4 claims PLENTY of those. Let it pass, ZGuy. The memorial isn't meant for you. As is often said on your side of the belief aisle.. "There but for the grace of God go I" ~Bang Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ldysknzfn1 Posted September 15, 2007 Share Posted September 15, 2007 They don't bother me in the least. I think it's nice when folks remember their loved ones in creative ways. I've noticed those "In memory of" window decals also. Does anyone know where to get those? Is it an online site or store? I'd like to get one. So please share if you know where to get them. Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
edgun88 Posted September 15, 2007 Share Posted September 15, 2007 I just say in my head "Wow...I guess someone died there. Sad." and then go on my merry way. They don't bother me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevenaa Posted September 15, 2007 Share Posted September 15, 2007 I find it odd. Too me it just seems to be a symptom of the inability to move on. Kinda like frequent trips to a grave site. I just don't see the sense in it. The person I loved will not be present at either place. Now, admittedly, I've never suffered a very close personal tragedy, so my view isn't based on personal experience. If something happened to one of my children, I can see not being able to let go. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KingGibbs Posted September 15, 2007 Share Posted September 15, 2007 I guess if you haven't had a loved one get killed in an accident you wouldn't know the emotions involved. Besides, is it really affecting your daily life to a point where you can't function? Simply put? Get a ****ing life and stop pissing and moaning because someone chooses to pay tribute to someone they dearly loved. As my father always said, "Everyone handles situations differently." That advice has made me less critical of people with the exception being anything Redskins. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blondie Posted September 15, 2007 Share Posted September 15, 2007 I find it odd. Too me it just seems to be a symptom of the inability to move on. Kinda like frequent trips to a grave site. I just don't see the sense in it. The person I loved will not be present at either place. Now, admittedly, I've never suffered a very close personal tragedy, so my view isn't based on personal experience. If something happened to one of my children, I can see not being able to let go. Your second to the last sentence said it all. If you have not suffered a loss......you dont know the feeling. No, the person is not there.....but standing there.....touching a marker....makes me feel closer. God forbid you suffer such a loss. And it is not being able to "let go". You NEVER let go of the love you have for someone. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark The Homer Posted September 15, 2007 Share Posted September 15, 2007 What Blondie said. But besides that, they remind the driver to be careful at particular spots. And to not be stupid. There's one memorial that's still visible on River Road that marks where four Whitman girls got into an accident in 1994. It involved alcohol. Two of them died, the other two maimed. On Labor Day weekend 1994, a Walt Whitman High School junior who had received her driver's license just three weeks earlier drove her BMW into a tree in Bethesda, splitting the car in half. The driver, Elizabeth Clark, and a passenger, Katherine Zirkle, died; two other passengers were critically injured. Afterward, friends described how the 16-year-old driver and some companions had purchased cases of beer without difficulty and drunk steadily at three houses and a hotel before she climbed behind the wheel a final time. It was Drawing the Line and Trina Leonard who made sure the community drew a moral from the story. As teenagers turned the crash site into a shrine with flowers and poems, Drawing the Line held a press conference and announced that River Road was not some isolated or romantic tragedy, but the outcome of bad decisions made by kids. The deaths helped mobilize the community into embracing a new approach to teen drinking. "That crash was pivotal," says Leonard. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/local/longterm/library/magazine/drinking060798.htm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
No_Pressure Posted September 16, 2007 Share Posted September 16, 2007 I don't like them because I hate being reminded that someone died a terrible and gruesome death in the same spot that I am now driving through. I'm a superstitious kind of person though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skins4Life28 Posted September 16, 2007 Share Posted September 16, 2007 I voted that they bother me, but in reality, I'm not bothered by them. Rather, I think they're stupid. Why make a memorial of the place where your loved one was tragically killed? It makes no sense to me. Also, I dislike the "In loving memory of" stickers that people put on their car. What is in loving memory? The window? Your cars window is in loving memory of someone? Isn't that odd? Will you never sell the car? "Yes, my 1990 Cavalier is for sale. You can have it for $1,500 -- but I'm keeing the rear window. Thats in loving memory of my friend Brad." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete Posted September 16, 2007 Share Posted September 16, 2007 They bother me because there a distraction, and found quite often on bad sections of roads. While I would never give a person a problem for doing it, I just don't think it should be allowed. While I'm and extremely focused driver, the vast majority of drivers aren't, and all it takes is a few seconds of looking away trying to read, or look at one of these roadside memorials to screw up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ImmortalDragon Posted September 24, 2007 Share Posted September 24, 2007 Anyone watch Curb Your Enthusiasm today? Larry had one of this moments with a roadside memorial. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PokerPacker Posted September 24, 2007 Share Posted September 24, 2007 Anyone watch Curb Your Enthusiasm today? Larry had one of this moments with a roadside memorial. yes, yes i did. first thing i thought of when i opened this thread was "did someone else watch 'Curb Your Enthusiasm?'" :laugh: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.