re: Do you visit peoples gravesites?

Yes. The majority of my family is buried in a cemetery less than a mile from my house. It's too convenient not to visit

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tangipahoe'ites

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Tangipahoans

you tell'em stink dawg!

I visit my uncle's grave every year on lundi gras, if I'm in Mobile during carnival. We're a tight family, and my mom was in a family of 11 kids, and he was the first to pass. He was also a great guy. My grandfather, great grandmother and great grandfather are also buried there. But we didn't start the tradition until my uncle passed.


My dad buried my mom in Atlanta, without thinking. I almost never visit Atlanta, so I haven't visited her grave since she passed. But my dad remarried. So in a few years, I may ask to move her to Mobile, if he decides to be buried next to his new wife.

Not a once.

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I don't see the point. You are talking to either a cement wall with a coffin/body in it, or you are talking to the ground with a coffin/body buried in it. It's not the person you once knew or loved. You have just as much luck talking to them in your room, your car, or whatever.

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Symbolism is pretty powerful. If it helps people feel a connection, it's a very good thing.

I do not. I have only been to one of my aunts'grave when we buried my grandparents. Haven't been back since - more than 30 years ago.

I told my parents that I will visit them while they were alive, but will not visit their graves once they are gone. My dear Dad made it easy by being cremated. We scattered his ashes in the canal behind the Florida house. I suppose he's out in the Gulf of Mexico somewhere. Mom is still alive and gonna be 90 in December. She wants to be cremated, also.

One of my brothers lost his eldest son in a small plane crash in 2002, just after he graduated college. They visit his grave at least on the anniversary of his death, which is coming up. I understand them going to the grave site.

If visiting a grave site brings a loved one some peace. I am all in favor of it. It just does nothing for me. My memories of those departed folks bring me joy and sadness. That's enough for me.

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They can't hear anything you say, they're dead and there's no afterlife

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That's your opinion

I go to a family cemetery about every 3-6 months. It's a small graveyard off a dirt road, several miles in the country outside a small town. It's not only a chance to pay respects, but also a pleasant reason to get out of the city and back to nature, in a lovely pastoral setting (between two mobile homes).

The visit has its unusual side -- I get to see the plot where I'm scheduled to be planted, which is kind of a weird experience. There's also somebody there with the same name as me, which means I can see a tombstone with my name on it, which is a very weird experience...