Decoration Day-by Ron Rash

As promised, I found "Decoration Day" by Ron Rash. This poem is from this book Among the Believers. I felt that there was a connection between this poem and my last blog post. What do you think? Does it match?

 

 

One whose hand could make a face

Out of paper and pencil Would lay the glassed black and whites On the communion table, Trace our dead kin back to life To walk this land they once walked And see again, through our eyes, The dogwoods, ash trees, and oaks, Swift flowing creeks, narrow skies, Peaks and coves in memory mapped So deep not even heaven Could wish them from looking back.

Shelton Laurel Cemetery Visit

I was lucky enough to interview Mona Lee Shelton, from Shelton Laurel, NC. Shelton Laurel is in Madison County and is referred to by the locals as “God’s Country”. Why, you ask? It’s God’s Country due to the fact of all the natural beauty this community has. You drive in on a two lane road, which is main road to travel anywhere in this community. As I was traveling to meet Mrs. Shelton, I was amazed by the tall mountains I was surrounded by that seemed to go on forever. Furthermore, there was just a peace about this community I felt as I as driving. As many may know, the Shelton Laurel Community was the site for a well known Civil War battle site, The Shelton Laurel Massacre. During the Civil War, thirteen men were shot and killed. Today, there is North Carolina Historic Sign directing people to the location of the graves.  The Appalachian writer, Ron Rash, even wrote a fictional book about the massacre and the Shelton Laurel Community, set in the 1970’s, entitled The World Made Straight. With all this in mind, I jumped at the chance to get an inside glimpse of this historically popular community!

My main purpose for talking with Mrs. Shelton was her knowledge of the local cemeteries in the area. When I first talked to her about Appalachia 2.0, she automatically told me about the older cemeteries she could show me.  As excited as she was to show me, I was up for whatever adventure she had planned!

I met Mrs. Shelton on her front porch, where she has a wonderful view of the mountains that I saw on drive in. After talking for a few minutes about what I would like to know, she told me to “load up” and she would take me around, sharing what she knew about her community. We took a short drive up the road and traveled up a gravel drive. It didn’t look like anything was up this drive, but she told me to “just wait and watch”. So I did as Mrs. Shelton told me. As soon as she got past one large curve on the drive, it opened up into a large field filled with numerous graves. And again, I felt that magical peace.

As we were walking through the cemetery, Mrs. Shelton knew a story about almost person who had been layed to rest in this cemetery. There were Civil War soldiers, WWI and WWII veterans, along with unmarked graves. Mona said that it was local knowledge/legend some of those unmarked graves were the graves of slaves from the 1800’s. After learning this, it was amazing to me that the leaders in the Shelton Laurel Community were still caring for the grounds. Too many times, we hear about unknown cemeteries being found during the construction of large projects, and nothing is done about the graves. They are simply absorbed into the building of the projects…

I guess that’s one defining quality of the people from the Appalachian region; as a whole, they care for their community members long after their death. Those that have passed on still seem to be respected, no matter how long they have been gone. And they always remain in the memories of those still living. At least, this is the feeling I got while Mrs. Shelton was telling me all she knew.

Mrs. Shelton also shared with me the concept of “decoration”. And for those you who don’t know what decoration is; it’s when the family and community members come to the cemeteries and decorate the headstones. They will place flowers and meaningful ornaments around their loved ones, showing their love to the ones who have passed on. I have participated in my fair share of decorations, but Mona Lee told me something I didn’t know. People used to have church services during these decoration days. I asked her if it was like having the funerals all over again. “Why no! People would whoop and holler. We always had a good ole time!”  She also said they would have a huge lunch afterwards. Everyone who came to the service would bring a covered dish and they had fellowship along with great food. After hearing this, my thought was “how much better could it get?”

There is a poem that Ron Rash wrote that I feel matches what Mrs. Shelton shared with me. I’ll make sure to find it and post it. See if you agree!