Day 2: A Walk Through History

Today's walk took me through Mt. Olivet Cemetery in Frederick, MD, which is the final resting place for some notable people in history:  Francis Scott Key (the Star Spangled Banner), Barbara Fritchie (immortalized by poet John Greenleaf Whittier), and Governor Thomas Johnson, Maryland's first governor.

The graveyard is huge, and the oldest sections are dominated by massive trees shading the graves beneath their spreading limbs.  I think this is going to be a frequent walking area for me, as there will be no shortage of subject matter here.  I'm saving some of the comments and thoughts I gathered today for future posts when I revisit this peaceful place.

Graves of Civil War heroes, Mt. Olivet Cemetery,
Frederick, Maryland
 

Lining a chainlink fence at the edge of the cemetery are the old and "new" tombstones of Civil War soldiers, many of them unknown.  The graves of these historic heroes butt up against the backyards of the homes adjacent to the chainlink fence, but although one may think it sad that these graves don't have the best of locations, someone long ago duplicated all of the now unreadable gravestones into more permanent headstones, preserving their names for years to come.  Many of the stones were decorated by the Confederate flag.

As I was walking, I started thinking about things like bad weather.  Will any type of weather keep me from doing my daily photo walk? 

To be honest, my least favorite weather is stiflingly humid summer days.  You know, those days when you feel like you are wearing a wet blanket.  That pretty much describes the weather for this week.  I think I will need to carry a small towel with me, to wipe my face every now and then.

That led me to thinking about other things to carry -- a copy of my driver's license with emergency contact information.  Perhaps some sunscreen and bug repellant wipes.  Certainly my cell phone and my car keys.  I should pack an emergency poncho for those sudden downpours.  Of course, I'll need a waist pack to put all that stuff in.  And I might need to buy some rubber boots for walking in the rain. 

So, one of my rules is to be prepared for any type of weather or unfavorable conditions and not let that be an excuse for not completing my walk. 

Now that I have posted this rule publicly, I am going to have to make sure I don't break it.  No weather excuses allowed!