Death is Exciting for Researchers

    Many people are fairly leary about death - even just talking about it gives them the jitters.  But those folks certainly aren't avid genealogists!  The die- hard researchers can sometimes be found exchanging pictures of headstones during late night get-togethers at Village Inn, Denny's, or other open haunts. ;-)
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     Death isn't meant to be feared so much as it is life's greatest mystery; the biggest curtain we just aren't allowed to see behind until it is our turn - next in line please - he's really a nice fellow,  death.  He's never in a hurry, calm and collected, and has the experience of the ages we could each learn a great deal from.  So try not to cringe every time you drive by a cemetery.  Our car broke down a while back in a busy intersection during morning rush hour traffic and I told my wife after I hurriedly pushed it into the cemetery entrance - "better the car than us - shall we just leave her here for the next round of burials?"
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     After losing both parents and one grandparent in 6 months and our last grandparent 13 months later you would think I had had enough of death for a while, but then working in a combination cemetery/funeral home and a wartime military casualty office I now actually have a great relationship with death...afterall, he is responsible for each and every death certificate, grave marker, and probate record you have found as well as the ones you are still looking for. :)