Cemetery trip

Where I live in Southern New Jersey, we are blessed with rich cultural and historical locations, perfect for field trips. Around the middle of October, my colleagues and I started a thematic unit on Graveyards/Cemeteries. The Social Studies teacher presented lessons on Veterans and various wars and some history behind burials in our country (like when you died in the winter, they would have the glass blower make you a glass coffin and you'd sit out until the ground thawed enough to dig; they'd break the glass and bury you in the Spring. I didn't know that!). The Science teacher assigned the kids a project researching different types of stone used in grave markers and how acid rain and other factors affect the lifespan of such stones. The Language Arts teachers had students write Epitaphs. And for math, I showed my kids how to quickly figure out the age of a person at their death. As a culminating experience (we couldn't call it a "field trip," so it was known as a "tour"), we walked to a local Churchyard and the students spent a morning last week completing a scavenger hunt around the gravesites. As I said, we're so lucky to live in an area with such rich history.....a church dating back to the 1700's, which was rebuilt with funding from George Washington, James Madison, and other famous Americans. (see http://www.stjohns1789.org/history.html for more information) From telling the tale of Joanie & Craig (two local teenagers who committeed suicide 40 years ago in protest of the Vietnam War) to teaching kids to look for clues in what they saw around them, it was a really neat experience! (And the 1 mile walk we got in that day sure tuckered them out for their afternoon classes!)

So on the chilly October morning we took our tour, as I reminded my 7th graders to lower their voices, to stop running, and to quit horsing around because we were in a place of respect, I tried to pause, to look around me and soak in what I was hoping they would soak in. The history, the individual stories, the beautiful serene calm that surrounded me. I've always been partial to the small--yet sturdy--markers and flags that adorn the graves of our veterans. I spent a few minutes straightening flags before we left--it was the least I could do to thank them for their service to our country. And in between answering the same question for the 20th time, I was able to capture this shot. A simple flag among a sea of grave markers. I didn't even get the name of this veteran. But I am grateful for what they have given me.
I can't decide between color and B&W. The fall colors in the trees really speak to me in the one above, but the monochrome of the one below speaks volumes as well. (Processed with Lolly's Milk Chocolate B&W)