McInnis' stone at St. Mary's in Souris. Was it King George III she was supposed to have danced with once. Or was it George IV? 
     
    
   
   
    
     For its occupants, a cemetery is a peaceful oasis. For us, it should be a welcome respite from the world, place for both 
     
     reflection and exploration. While they should be treated with respect and dignity, the grounds are also a park. Reverence is not 
     
     compromised by a family enjoying a picnic, a couple enjoying a jog, or an individual enjoying a meditation with the past. A cemetery 
     
     is an active part of our community of today and a tribute to our community of yesterday. 
     
    
   
   
    
     Please. Walk on the grass! 
     
    
   
   
    
     Note on Sources 
     
    
   
   
    
     This article is one of several unfinished pieces found in the personal archive of my uncle, John Russell Leard, who passed 
     
     away in 1993. I have edited and in some cases added to his text. He lists, as his sources, the various stones and markers he visited in 
     
     Island cemeteries, and interview he had, probably sometime in the early 1980s, with Johnny Beers of Brooklyn, monument carver and 
     
     gospel singer, and a conversation with the Reverend John Sutherland Bonnell of New York, NY, on the symbolism of grave markers. 
     
     My daughter Susan and myself took this material and verified his observations by traveling to the cemeteries he cites. A special 
     
     thanks to Reg "Dutch" Thompson for his assistance and guidance, and to Canon Robert Tuck for further advice on the symbolism to 
     
    
   
   
    
     be found on grave markers. 
     
    
   
   
    
     Although the overall design of a grave marker allowed for individuality, they incorporate a common language of symbolism. 
     
     Although volumes could (and have been) written on the symbols of grave markers, here are some of the more common Christian 
     
     symbols to be found on older Prince Edward Island markers: 
     
    
   
   
    
     The following list of some symbolic interpretations is helpful when viewing these older memorials. 
     
    
   
   
    
     Columns: Broken - a person has passed away in the prime of his life. 
     
     Complete - signifies that life has been completed. 
     
     Urn on top - a symbol of death. 
     
     Shroud on urn - a funerary sign meaning burial. 
     
     Acanthus leaf: very common in the cemetery especially on corners of capitals, holding up globes, etc. 
     
     symbol of peace in the Garden of Eden 
     
     Palm: symbol of peace, also of resurrection, forever lasting life 
     
     Ivy: symbol of immortality because it stays green forever