When we were dating, Nick loved to take me to cemeteries. Okay, not really. But there were a couple times when, on a date, we went to a cemetery to see such sites and Bruce Lee’s grave. Exciting? Barely. Creepy? A little. But, I was in love and would have done just about anything that fell under the heading of legal and virtuous. But still… cemeteries creep me out a little. I do try to be more mature than that, but I usually fail.
So, yesterday the kids and I were driving by a cemetery when Mylie commented, “That’s where the people died!” Not sure if she fully understood the concept of cemeteries, I corrected her. “Yes, that’s where they put the people who have died.”
We passed the cemetery, but her curiosity did not wane.
“How do the people get in the grass?”
I was concerned about disseminating truth without scaring her, but I simply said, “They dig a hole in the ground, and then they put the people in there,” in the most cheery voice I could muster.
Apparently, I didn’t need to worry about the creep factor because she said, “Maybe when I get bigger… when I’m a teenager girl… I can dig the holes!” Not wanting to discourage her career opportunities, I said, “Oh, it’s called a grave digger. You want to be a grave digger when you grow up?”
“Yeah! I want to be a grave digger!”
“Oh, that’s neat. Why do you want to be a grave digger?”
“Because I like to dig.”
Simple enough. I tried to leave it at that until she asked, “Are grave diggers usually girls?”
The women’s libber in me responded “Well, a lot of times they’re boys, because it can be kind of hard to dig big holes like that, but if it’s what you want to do, you can do anything you want!” Of course, now I feel like I’m encouraging her to dig graves for a living.
The conversation more or less ended there, when she got distracted by reading the street signs to me, but it was a salient enough experience for her to tell her dad that night that she was going to be a grave digger when she grows up. Of course, I know that all kids have ideas about what they want to do that simply disappear over time. Nick, for instance, wanted to be a smoker when he grew up. And I’m not saying that being a grave digger isn’t a respectable and necessary job. All I’m saying is, it’s not exactly what you dream for your little girl. So, hopefully this is one career dream that will rest in peace. 
I loved reading this post. Josh has told me that he wants to be a Garbage man and sleep in the bed in the truck.
Graydon took me to the cemetary the night that he proposed. It was a dark november night and we got their later than planned. He took me to my Mom’s grave. It was sweet, but we both started feeling a little creeped out so we hurried and left. During the day cemetaries can be very interesting, though.
HILARIOUS! I can just imagine that entire conversation between you and Mylie. Still giggling.
Ha ha! Ryan told me he wants to be a car wash man, lol, because it looks EASY and fun. Another day he said he thinks trailer parks look like nice places to ride bikes and be a kid and he would like to live in one when he’s grown up.
OK, so I see a portrait here, wispy images of you and Nick at a cemetery. What do you think?
That was a really funny post. I’m hoping that Nick did not grow up to be a smoker.