Joshua, Karen, Pat, and Davy were out for a walk on an overcast autumn afternoon, enjoying the foliage while discussing nothing in particular. 

“Here,” said Davy, handing Pat a bright yellow leaf he had caught in mid-air. 

Pat took it by the stem and slowly twirled it between her fingers to study it. “Wow, look at the color of this one!” she exclaimed. “This one really pops!” She carefully placed it in her jacket pocket and gave Davy a smile. “Thanks! I'm going to save that one.” 

“Look at that tree,” said Karen, pointing down the road. “That one is bright red.” 

“The whole ground is carpeted in red,” added Joshua. “Wow!” 

They walked up to the tree and sat down under it, looking up at the blazing canopy of red. “Sure is pretty this time of year,” said Joshua as he watched the leaves gently sprinkle down over them. 

“I think this is my favorite time of year,” said Pat. “I'm always amazed at the display of color and textures.” 

“I like the rustle of the leaves,” said Karen. “And the scent. It's a subtle, rustic scent that just appeals to me somehow.” 

Suddenly Davy pointed up. “Hey, check out that squirrel,” he laughed as he watched it jump and scamper in the branches. “Those little guys have no fear at all!” 

Everyone paused to watch the antics of the squirrel. “Wow, look at him go!” laughed Karen as it made a fearless leap to another branch. 

“I sure hope he has a parachute,” quipped Davy as he got to his feet before taking Pats hand to help her up. “It's a long way down.” 

As they continued their walk, Joshua noted, “Autumn is always kind of a subdued season; everything tends to wind down before winter sets in.” 

“It's like everyone starts to go into hibernation,” nodded Karen. “People tend to migrate indoors for the winter months.” 

“Especially once we get into Daylight Savings Time,” agreed Joshua. 

“I think we should do away with Daylight Savings Time,” grumbled Davy. “It always messes me up. I hate it when it gets dark extra early.” 

“At least you get that extra hour of sleep,” noted Joshua. 

“Yeah, and then they steal it back in the spring. Someday I'll move someplace near the equator so I won't have to deal with it anymore,” said Davy. 

“Oh, look!” exclaimed Pat, gesturing across the road. “That must be a very old cemetery.” 

“Some of it dates back a couple hundred years,” replied Karen. “It's a pretty big one, too.” 

“Let's go explore it!” said Pat. “I always enjoy exploring old cemeteries!” 

“Cool! Maybe we'll run into an old ghost or something,” said Davy as they walked through the entrance. 

“Actually, there's a lot of history here, when you think about it,” noted Karen. 

“It's a nice, quiet place, too,” said Joshua. “It's a good place to contemplate and reflect.” 

“I went on a cemetery tour once,” added Pat. “They had people dressed in period clothing and they gave a narrative of the more notable people buried there. It was interesting, and a lot of fun.” 

“That's really neat. I'm sure you could learn a lot about some of the people buried here if you went through the town archives,” noted Karen. 

Pat stopped at a grave marker and knelt down to study it. “This one dates back to 1858,” she said, carefully running her fingers along the weather-worn date carved into it. “I can't quite make out the name, though.” 

“Kind of sad,” said Karen. “Being forgotten to time like that.” 

Joshua agreed. “A lot of those gravestones in the 1800's were made of sandstone,” he noted. “Sometimes it doesn't weather very well compared to the older slate ones or the newer ones carved from granite.” 

“All the acid rain doesn't help matters much, either,” noted Davy. 

“Most towns have banned gravestone rubbings as well,” added Pat as Davy helped her up. “Gravestone rubbing often adds to the weather damage of the gravestones and makes things worse.” 

“This one is made of bronze,” said Joshua, pointing to a nearby plaque on the ground. “He was killed in World War I.” He knelt down to straighten a flag that had been placed on the grave. “There are quite a few war veterans buried here. I think some may even date back to the Revolutionary War. We might find them if we look long enough.” 

“It's hard to imagine the sacrifices those brave soldiers made for us,” said Karen quietly. “It takes on a different perspective here. It's too bad more people don't take the time to visit these places to appreciate what they did.” 

Pat silently nodded in agreement. 

As they were contemplating this, the silence was interrupted by the sound of laughter. Everyone looked toward Davy, who had wandered over to a family plot, pointing at an obelisk marker. 

“Hey Batman, what are you laughing at?” Joshua called out. 

“Oh, man!” laughed Davy. “You have GOT to see this!” 

Their curiosity piqued, everyone walked over to see what Davy found so funny. “Look!” laughed Davy. “What a way to go through life!” 

Joshua looked at the family name Davy was pointing to, and read it aloud. “Virgin.” 

“Somebody died a virgin!” exclaimed Davy. 

Pat began to shriek in embarrassment, while Karen pulled her sweatshirt collar over her blushing face. “DA-VY!” she scolded with laughter. 

Joshua put his hand over his eyes and shook his head with laughter. “Only you, Davy. Only you!” 

Davy grinned. “Well, SOMEBODY had to say it!” 

“This is an interesting one,” said Joshua as he circled a marker that was situated on four short columns. He leaned closer, studying the engraving on top. “It belongs to a rabbi.” 

“Hey, this is pretty neat,” said Davy. “One side is in English, and the other side is in...what's that, Yiddish?” 

“You mean Hebrew,” said Pat. 

“Yeah, something like that.” 

“This must be a Jewish plot,” Joshua observed. “There are several headstones engraved in the same elegant fashion.” 

“Wow, he passed away in 1826,” said Karen. “It's fascinating to think about how he lived so long ago.” 

Pat leaned close, running her fingers across the dates as she studied them. “Born in...looks like 1750?” She carefully brushed and blew away some of the dirt and looked again. “1738.” 

“Well, at least he lived to a ripe old age,” noted Davy. 

“Some of these gravestones are just beautiful,” said Pat as she looked around. “Look at the intricate styling engraved in this one,” she added, kneeling down to study another one that caught her attention. “Sometimes you can tell how prominent someone was in the community by how elaborate their grave site is.” 

“I noticed that,” said Joshua. “Some people had a lot of money to spend on their final resting place.” 

“The ones with the angels on top are pretty neat,” added Davy, looking up at one particularly ornate gravestone. “I'll bet that was a lot of work.” 

“It's a work of art, too,” added Pat as she admired the angel with him. “There are a lot of beautiful sculptures around here.” 

“Look at that mausoleum over there,” said Karen, pointing at an ornate structure. “That's pretty spectacular.”  

They walked up the steps and peered through the door. “Wow, look at the stained glass,” she said quietly. 

Pat read through the dates on each crypt. “The last family member was interred here in 1893.” She stepped back and looked up at the granite structure in awe. “Look at the craftsmanship; someone did some beautiful stone work.” 

“That stonework isn't light, either,” observed Davy as they continued their walk. “Mostly manual labor and horses to build those. It sure was a lot of work to go out in style.” 

Joshua nodded in agreement. “People seem to have different ideas and traditions about their dearly departed over the course of years and generations. You can see how much those cultural mindsets have changed and evolved by looking at the different styles of headstones and burial plots.”