A fallen tombstone in St. James Park
As I wandered around Liverpool I came across the beautiful, fairly new, but in new Gothic style, Anglican Cathedral, St. Jame’s – started in 1900. Beside the Cathedral, which is the second largest in Europe, is a park that was turned into Liverpool’s main cemetery from 1825 – 1936. Well this park used to be a quarry from which many of the public buildings in Liverpool were built out of in the 18th century.
The neo-Gothic almost eerie looking St. Jame's Cathedral in Liverpool
I went for wander in this park as I found the entrance through a stone tunnel to be really cool. Also its position below the Cathedral was a good place to look up at the gothic building. As I was walking along, I came across many tombstones that were broken, fallen over or lying on the ground. And this really brought to reason for me the reason why I am quite against first of all being buried, I want to be cremated, but secondly having my body or ashes interred anywhere with a commemorative plaque or stone.
The entrance to the park lined with tombstones
And the reason for this is that first of all it assumes that the only place to be close to a deceased person’s spirit is by going to the location of their last earthly bodily remains. Secondly it also assumes that people are going to visit and upkeep the location since I believe it is the responsibility in large part of the relatives to do so. Thirdly, since I believe in multiple lives, it would therefore mean that potentially a person might have multiple sites of their remains if the cemeteries are old enough. And finally, as was the case with the tombstone I took the picture of, they might very well be forgotten and then the tombstone becomes this reminder of a forgotten person which is way sadder to me than not having a particular location where you can be close to a person who is not longer roaming the earth. Besides, I think you are close to a person in your mind anyway not by a particular location.
One of the gorge-like areas in the park
So this left me to ponder my beliefs and my desires and thus the reason why when I die, I want to be cremated and my remains can just left at the crematorium. Anyway, enough of that topic I guess.
St. Jame's Mount - the oldest park in Liverpool set up in the late 1700's to provide a view of the city below
One final thing of note that I liked in park was this little fountain – or should I say – spout of water. It apparently is the last remaining and oldest running spring in Liverpool discovered in 1767 that has been maintained and preserved. The spring is known to have healing properties. I thought it was pretty cool. Anyway, enough of this diatribe and off to other topics! :o)
The chalybeate spring in the park