Bebop

We have a cemetery out here in Chicago that is famous for "ghosts," and people travel there all the time to get a thrill. During the 60s, it was trashed by teenagers out on a dare or to get high and make out. Some of them even tried to dig up the graves. They also turned over and crushed some of the headstones, and vomited on the graves. To this day the place is still a big draw, and it's still a mess. It's just a cemetery.

I take it personal because I might be near the end of my life (terminal illness). I'd really like to be buried out in the middle of nowhere, but I'll probably end up near family. I look forward to having my friends and family "visit" me. If I'm out in the middle of nowhere and a little kid stumbles across my grave in peace, I'll be ticked pink to have a chat with him/her IF it's possible - as long as he/she is respectful to me as they would be to their own grandmother.

However, if curious onlookers, rowdy teenagers, daredevils or ghost hunters show up I'll be REALLY angry. I'm not a spectacle. I'm a human being. I'm a wife. I'm a mother. I'm a sister. I'm a friend. I like my privacy. I'd like to rest in peace without any cameras trying to pry up my dress or dig in my closet.

Awareness of spirits is fine with me, but certain lines shouldn't be crossed. I don't want to end up being just a segment on a TV program or summer camp activity - or strip-tease artist for thrill-seekers. My family wouldn't appreciate it either. They also wouldn't appreciate strangers writing fantasy stories about me and saying they know me. They also wouldn't appreciate having to relive the agony of my death and their loss in order to "bring awareness" of death and the afterlife.

You're right. This is just my opinion, but it's my heart and soul we're talking about - it's mine.

Now don't you have some flowers to pollinate or something, Busy Bee?