In Brooklyn, Connecticut, there is an interesting cemetery next to the fair grounds on Rte. 169 (Canterbury Rd.). It's one of those small-town burying grounds where the earliest dated stone is from 1741 and the most recent is less than two months old.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpQmmxinoFTXfTRAY9efAKAObbPBtR8E-x3VtZlKffEMpZUHYMskZPVNeWhwDGfDyi2aGsWkwro8U7Utwl-u8ueyxv8T-k8muSZQiNxxyz-7aUcNJ03gZw6fPdxh22x9EN8XWtQEa1xWY/s320/DSC_5449.JPG)
I don't venture into modern cemeteries very often, so I was a little surprised by the modern stones in Brooklyn. I knew that people get laser-etched stones, but I had never seen one that was both laser-etched and colorized. These pictures aren't the best — I say that all the time, but this time it's for a new reason: I didn't realize that the modern stones were so reflective, so you can see my reflection in some of them. The Clifford and Frances Green stone (2001) features an olde-tyme winter skating scene complete with decorated Christmas trees and wreaths on the lampposts. I wonder what made Frances and Clifford choose this scene. Did it remind them of their childhoods? Did they collect Christmas figurines? I don't know, but I've never seen anything like it.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2DoCPOdUNJYoGcbM7TamvvuLAiteEdyylhHvciwwGlAqdbfjRUIfwlCmNTsT87JsYWim8HQKsRwR5YuaWK3IrQxe9zIpkzqXvQJfCWOPPxoj6alSoQTxB4eIrlLfgUmPqqf7SR7oMut0/s320/DSC_5451.JPG)
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDdsGuhXXc91A8IQq-QB3RyGT5BPz-xglYiPsK3NMWPMxKM-qE_FhjBdMYu6568mOM3ltsspIJ9l3ZFs5n4d_X-zZuKQMUm8EX7DkgyDxlVMqSeeQad3yFm6IU5lRH0CdVDRk71-vIZ1E/s320/DSC_5452.JPG)
Other recent stones also include rural scenes. The Levola stone (2003) shows a rocky farm with silos, deer, and stony mountains in the background.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhN3-lB-OUX8tr_jpv7qxashwT-WLmN8LirY8w90tdRU65BJ9sF-YkZgSjSDHjK4ySi4JY5dkwZCuDA7C1eddbPEu4Jk3v9-Vr_1Hbw78wH2VPWkLn43Cm_44NmqaKswr16s5ybYQcmMps/s400/DSC_5477.JPG)
The farm picture on the Blanchette/Harrison stone (2008) is less sophisticated, but just as rural. Brooklyn is still a rural community, so it's possible that the Levolas, Blanchettes, and Harrisons were all really farmers, but it's possible that they just found the scenes peaceful.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJZTzm7sjx6mScyWYq53WmsThPccWXPNWcGHowM9FNcSh-7Jg8tvIi4upbihSsyTAFypSmEgfry0qWskN73nwaYUcSuX5hVqswyBcGl8X7wkXA5daVZnnp1P9QUNDCg6PTW_lO6l2mI_A/s400/DSC_5471.JPG)
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgy-JYLMR4hIF7Z_t5lxPezE4jK9iyfbqbX44Fs8rQbITJgO5O8mON3RCoZnAG5HCErHDvXXcl58tYwsnvdNrFojkPBvv03G4hsHx9Dxtj01KO0P3MphvKH95kblHeOXQm5jiUSxaN2rBM/s400/DSC_5461.JPG)
Other residents of Brooklyn chose to adorn their gravestones with personal interests. Shaun Fredrick's family put a picture of his Harley on his gravestone. Josephine Courcy's stone (1991) attests to her love of Elvis.
Now that I know that modern stones have interesting images, I may spend some more time in more recent cemeteries. Though, I guess, it is a little weirder to photograph modern stones than it is to photograph historic stones.
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