Many people have been buried over the years in obscure locations. Many will never be found, but it is always enjoyable to locate and identify graves. Many of you remember the story of my chance to find and identify my Grandmother's grave in Vernon, Texas just a few years ago.We live in Parker County, Texas, and there are dozens of cemeteries, many with unidentified graves.
My brother, Gene, and I just returned from a grave search in Leslie, Arkansas. Gene was born there in 1932, and another brother, Darrell Don died at birth there in 1934. My Dad carved on a small stone the inscription "Infant of Mr. and Mrs. Cliff Cotter - 1934". It has been in the same small plot since that time, and Gene and I made a special journey to that very sacred spot.
We were not even sure that the stone would still be standing as it had been about 30 years since we had visited the site. We were also not sure we'd be able to find it among the many old and broken stones. We weren't even sure whether the cemetery would be overgrown and inaccessible. So we took along plenty of tools inlcuding a weedeater, pruning shears, hoes, shovels, and other ncessary deforesting items.
We had a wonderful surprise.
The cemetery has been enlarged and modernized, and the entrance gate is in a different location. It is, my the way, in the beautiful mountains of northern Arkansas. It is a wonderful setting for a cemetery.
We walked directly to the marker. It was right where my Dad had placed it in the ground 75 years ago. It still stood tall and proud with lots of moss on the back side. It was a beautiful sight.
Gene and I had taken along some supplies if we needed to lay the stone on its side. We had plans to possibly pour a small concrete slab as a support for the stone. All of those plans were discarded when we saw how strong the stone stood in the ground. Our Dad put it there; we're not moving it.
We did add another stone to the grave. It is an explanation of the person buried there. It says, "Darrell Don Cotter, Born and Died September 24, 1934, Original Stone Carved by Father, Clifford Victor Cotter". I also called the treasurer of the cemetery association and asked them to add Darrell's name to their website information.
Almost everyone who ever knew anything or had heard anything about Darrell Don is now gone. It really wouldn't make much difference if we didn't add the new marker. It did make a difference to Gene and me in our later years of life.
It has often been suggested that if Darrell Don had survived and lived, things would have been different. I may have never been born as my Dad and Mom raised two boys during the depression years. They might not have had a third boy.
So . . what we did the past couple of days is very important to me. It's a way for me to honor an unknown brother; it's a way for me to thank God for my own life. It's a way to recognize the importance of our daily walk with God.
We had a fun trip to Arkansas. If you're ever in Leslie, Arkansas, be sure to look up the grave of Darrell Don Cotter.
4 comments:
It was a blessed trip. Sam and I had a great visit. I enjoyed go to places I remember as a very small boy where we found the old gas station and the spring across the road where we got our water. The real joy was finding Darrell Don's grave and the stone that Dad had carved. It was a beautiful trip.
Thank you Sam
Gene
What an incredible trip. I'm excited the two of you were able to share this experience. I can't wait to see more pictures from the trip.
Great story and great reason for the trip. Maybe we will make another stop later this year. Sounds like an area I would like to see. And regarding siblings, I have sort of heard that there was a miscarriage between my brother and me. I can't be sure since mom and dad are both gone now, and my brother doesn't know any more about it than I do. But in our time those things were sometimes taboo as far as talking about in "polite" society. So I will probably never know, but your point of three kids versus two in the depression years is worth noting. We sometimes take life for granted, don't we? Thanks for sharing your heart, Sam.
It's been some time since I visited The Cotter Key.
What a delightful story of two brothers making a trip to honor, not only a brother who never knew them, but to honor a father who carved with his own hands a tribute to his son; a son who had never helped in the yard or worked a job to help the family in the tough days of the depression.
This infant son was honored, not for what he had done nor for what he would accomplish, but merely because he carried the family name and blood. "Behold, what manner of love the Father has lavished upon us, that we should be called the children of God."
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