Cemetery Lessons

August 14th, 2024
by Kim Mayes

Over the summer we have had guest authors for our Words for Wednesday. Today will be the last segment of our summer series and today’s guest author is Kim Mayes. Enjoy!

Cemetery Lessons

My mom and I took a trip last week, just the two of us. We packed our things and headed west to the hills of East Tennessee, the place both of us will always call home. Our agenda was simple: to visit a couple of family members and to do some “running around” as she calls it, which means seeing old home places, visiting graves, and reminiscing about days gone by.

After enjoying lunch with my dad’s sister, Mom and I headed out for some running around. Traipsing around the beautiful countryside, she wanted to find her grandfather’s grave, my great-grandfather. At 83, my mom is sharp as a tack when it comes to remembering where things are in what she would call her neck of the woods. She remembered the cemetery was close to Capps Branch Church and a quick Google search lead us straight to the parking lot. No cemetery in sight, however. She remarked that it was back near the main road. After some twisting and turning and, against my better judgement, asking a complete stranger for help, we found the tiny plot of land we were looking for up on top of a hill, completely hidden from sight.

We made our way up the very steep, nearly impassable road to the gate of the cemetery. Upon finding the entrance, she jumped right out of the car, despite the chain wrapped gate just outside her window. A simple hook held the chain in place and thankfully we freed the gate and went right in. She quickly found the headstone she was seeking and she and I stopped to talk about this man who passed away long before I drew my first breath.

Until that day, all I knew of “Dad Cupp” was that everyone called him by that name. Seeing how important it was to my mom to find his grave made me curious about the man whose body lay there, so I asked her to tell me what she knew of him. All she had to say was that my great-grandmother said he was VERY hard to get along with! And there’s my 2x4 moment....

A 2x4 moment is when God hits you over the back of the head with a 2x4 to drive home His point. We’ve all had those moments, right? I can’t take credit for the perfection of this terminology. Credit belongs to a dear friend, but nothing is more fitting here.

The words my mom chose to describe this man stood out to me. His days on this earth are finished, and all that is left behind is what was known of him in the brief time he was here.
Walking through a handful of cemeteries that day and having the experience of learning about Dad Cupp, I couldn’t help but consider what could be said of me. So many points for contemplation surfaced in reflection: What do my kids see me chasing? Does my husband see a loving wife, or a quarrelsome one? Do those in my wake feel love, kindness, and encouragement or something else? Am I pointing people toward Jesus, or away from Him? James 4:14 (NASB) tells me that I am, “a vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes away.” Am I doing all I can to be living in God’s will with my “little while?”
I’m sure there is much more to know about Dad Cupp, but for now, I’ll sit with what I learned of him that day in the cemetery. That’s all I need to know right now as I check in on my own life and surrender what needs turning over.

These are your Words for Wednesday! Enjoy the rest of your day!
In His love,

Kim