The Church Yard

Seventeen years ago, I visited Cades Cove  in rural Tennessee. I have often thought of that place. There were small, rustic old cabins. This is the type of housing the frontiers-people lived in during the 1800's.  As we walked along, looking at the beautiful, quiet surroundings of the woods and simple structures, I was in awe.

Soon we came across a Church yard.   The simple building spoke of a time when ornate designs, or furnishings, were impossible for the pioneer families who resided there. Their life revolved around the most basic and essential things - Bible, Food, Shelter, Survival, Family and the Church.  I didn't see a single store.  But what keeps drawing me back to the memory of Cades Cove is the gravestones. 

We read the names of so many people. There were small children, babies, elderly, and husbands with their wives. The dates were in the 1800's and it was just amazing to realize that these godly people lived in that very spot.

There were also sayings on the graves.  Sweet words of comfort to onlookers, like Something from the Bible.  The wives also had the most precious words:  "Beloved Wife and Mother." Because that was the focus of those women's lives.  That was what mattered more than anything else in the world.

Every now and then, we need to look back at different times and places in American History, so that we may understand what is happening to our culture. We cannot allow ourselves to be so "Americanized" that we lose our heritage and our traditions.  Modernism and changes will always come quickly.  . . Just like the wind, which we can feel but not see.  If we are strong and stable in our historic roots, nothing will be able to shake us.

Blessings
Mrs. White

From the Archives -

Life during hard times - When There Isn't Much.

Taking Pride in One's Work - When Mother is the Maid.

The Way it Was before Feminism - The Old Time Housewife.