The two Valley Grove churches, including the 1862 limestone church, are edged by a cemetery. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo October 2024)
A CEMETERY MAY SEEM an unlikely spot to find inspiration. But that’s exactly what I found in mid October while meandering through Valley Grove Cemetery, rural Nerstrand. The graveyard sits next to the historic Valley Grove churches and rates as one of my favorite peaceful places in Rice County.
In the distance, a colorful tree line backgrounds the cemetery in October. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted file photo October 2024)
Black-eyed susans are among the prairie wildflowers that grow on Valley Grove’s 50 acres. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo October 2024)
Stunning oak trees shelter a section of the cemetery. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo October 2024)
Here, high atop a hill, a vista of fields and farm sites, of woods, of prairie grasses and wildflowers, sings of tranquility. My spirit quiets in the presence of this place. Here I can hear a rooster crowing from afar. Here I can feel the wind on my face. Here I can look into the expansive sky and imagine.
So many great messages on this tombstone. What a gift to the living. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo October 2024)
I can imagine a world of peace, hope, love, kindness. Words lifted from grave markers of the dead and given to the living. If only we choose to accept them and run with them, creating a kinder, gentler world.
The section in the foreground is where I found the words and messages featured here. An 1894 wood-frame church also graces this place. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo October 2024)
Simple, basic and powerful words on a tombstone. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo October 2024)
Poetically beautiful words on a gravestone plaque. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo October 2024)
These words I found within the cemetery. Hope. Help. Peace. Be kind. And many more. Words and messages I needed to read in the discord of today, in these unsettling times. Words that are chiseled onto stone, chosen by loved ones to honor those they loved or perhaps chosen by the dead before their deaths.
Zooming in on those incredibly powerful messages. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo October 2024)
On this day, I contemplated the power of these enduring words and quotes which inspire, encourage, uplift. These words weather storms, stand granite-strong and unchanging here under the Minnesota sky of snow and rain and scorching sun.
A reminder of what we need, especially now. Peace on all levels. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo October 2024)
As I walked in this particular section of the cemetery, I felt gratitude toward those who likely lived the words inscribed upon their tombstones. I would have liked them and the examples they set by living generously, selflessly, compassionately. I would have appreciated how they lived with care, kindness, optimism and so much more. How they helped their neighbor. Loved. Served. Did everything they could to create a better world by their loving words and actions.
And then I found one of my favorite words, hope, on a tombstone. Hope, always hold hope. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo October 2024)
This I found at Valley Grove. Among the tombstones, among the dead. Messages for the living that resonate, that hold wisdom and shine like a billion bright stars piercing the darkness.
The cemetery at Valley Grove sidles near the two historic Norwegian churches. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo March 2022)
A TIME EXISTED when I avoided cemeteries. I didn’t like the thought of being among the dead. It creeped me out. The thought of bodies beneath the ground. Bones. Nightmarish thoughts fueled by imagination. Long ago I left those dark fears behind, accepting the reality of death. That came with maturity, a deepening of my faith and the deaths of many loved ones.
Art and heritage and faith and lives remembered. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo March 2022)
Oaks edge the cemetery and a road along it. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo March 2022)
Graveyards are more than a final resting place, as we so nicely phrase it, for loved ones. Graveyards are also places to grieve and remember. They are also places of history, heritage and art, often sited in the most peaceful of settings. Valley Grove checks off all those items on that place list.
The cemetery surrounds three sides of the 1862 stone church. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo March 2022)
I’ve explored many other country cemeteries, wandering among the tombstones, wondering about the people buried there. Why did they die so young? What were they like? What were their occupations? What made them happy? Who misses them?
Erik Floren’s tombstone. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo March 2022)
The in-ground marker of Ole Hemvig. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo March 2022)
Honoring Thomas and Einar Halvorsen. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted file photo March 2022)
Tombstone engravings reveal bits and pieces of life stories. Sometimes of heritage. At Valley Grove, many names reference a Norwegian heritage. Ole. Erik. Einar. Inger. Junius. I doubt I’ve ever found so many “Oles” buried in a Minnesota cemetery. That’s not unexpected given the Norwegian immigrants who settled here and built the two churches which still stand. Older stone inscriptions are sometimes written in the Mother Tongue. German I can occasionally decipher. Norwegian, not.
On Clyde Heggedahl’s tombstone. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo March 2022)
Through the years, the art of grave markers has evolved to more elaborate artwork that tells a story. For example, at Valley Grove an image of Nerstrand Meats & Catering decorates the stone of Clyde Heggedahl of that long-standing business co-owned with his wife, Mary. He died in 2016. At the meat market.
A faith and love-filled message. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo March 2022)
Bible verses and inspirational messages grace gravestones, too, offering insights and comfort. Sharing hope and faith. Love.
A special marker for a veteran’s grave. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo March 2022)
I often pause at burial spots marked by military markers. As the daughter of a Korean War veteran, I hold honor in my heart for those who have served. I recognize the sacrifices, whether given through death on the battlefield or the life-long challenges faced by too many of our veterans. That included my father, who died in 2003. Dad received his purple heart 47 years after he was wounded in Korea. War forever wounded his spirit; he battled Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. I am thankful veterans’ graves are flagged with honor.
The old stone church and cemetery at Valley Grove. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo March 2022)
There’s simply lots to observe and contemplate while meandering among tombstones. I always do so with respect, for these grounds feel almost sacred. At Valley Grove, a certain serenity envelopes me in this peaceful hilltop setting among oaks and prairie.
What’s the story behind the “Snuffy” nickname? (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo March 2022)
Although those buried here were unknown to me in life, I’ve come to know them a bit in death. The countless “Oles.” The young and the old. They were all cherished. Loved. Part of the family of humanity. They mattered. And their stories matter.
Posted on the gated entry to Valley Grove. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo March 2022)
TELL ME: Do you explore cemeteries and, if you do, why?
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