All the graves that feature in this booklet are in a cemetery in South London, close to where I work as a funeral arranger.
The graves are ‘lawn graves’, meaning that only simple headstones are permitted, to allow the grass to be mowed. In many cases, however, personal items are placed on the graves, and little fences are installed around them.
Some of the objects relate to traditions such as the Gypsy ‘Vacant Chair’, which allows the deceased to rest. Or the Buddhist offering of fruit. Or the Jamaican pouring of rum. A great many other offerings are newly imagined and spontaneous.
The council that runs the cemetery is admirably ‘hands off’ and doesn’t disturb or remove the displays to level the earth or mow the grass. Over the months and years, the items on the graves are added to or changed, often frequently.
This booklet pays homage to this placing of objects and acknowledges the enormity of what’s being expressed in this way.
Faith is conveyed in rosary beads; distant places are evoked through the placing of flags. Visceral connections are being made by the placing of a toy or a piece of jewellery.
There is appeasement here, and inconsolable loss. There is too the need to comfort, protect, fortify, and love, and the will to sustain the spirit of someone gone, and to keep memories alive.