In his novel The Floatplane Notebooks, Clyde Edgerton describes the grave-clearing ritual of the Copeland family of Listre, N.C.
Every year in May, generations of Copelands come to the family burial plot to clear away the wisteria that has grown over the site, work done by the adult Copelands while little ones play and seniors tell family stories.
Even though the Copelands could save themselves a lot of work by simply digging out the roots of the wisteria vine so that the graves wouldn’t be covered with such a tangled mess, if they did so there would be much less reason to gather at the family site each May.
I’m learning the value of visiting cemeteries and remembering. That’s true for a faith community such as Calvin College as it is for a family plot.
It has become a habit for me to visit the Spoelhof grave site in the Woodlawn Cemetery of Grand Rapids each year, viewing the stone that lists the names of William and Angeline Spoelhof and sprucing up the small plot after a hard Michigan winter and rainy Michigan spring.
There aren’t any Spoelhof immediate family members in town, so it seems right that a few of us at the college that Dr. Spoelhof loved so deeply and led so well as president for 25 years take on some grave-clearing duties.
It isn’t hard work—no wisteria there—and the spiritual impact is powerful.
This year, I had the delight of being joined by two Calvin colleagues who knew the Spoelhofs very well—chaplain emeritus Dale Cooper and professor of English emeritus Steve Van der Weele.
A bonus of inviting Chaplain Cooper to such a gathering is that he has committed much of the Psalms to heart, so noticing the verses listed on the Spoelhof stone, Psalm 91:1-2, Dale was ready with the text: “Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High/Will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. /I will say of the Lord, ‘He is my refuge and my fortress, /My God, in whom I trust.’”
All three of us had “Spoelhof stories” to tell, and it was good to remember how we are strengthened in our faith by knowing and learning from others in our Christian communities.
We sang some hymns, prayed and were encouraged by standing together in a quiet setting next to markers that reminded us of inspiring witnesses and a college community that has been faithful to its mission of sending out gifted graduates who influence countless corners of the world for Christ.
We talked about coming back to this place every year for sprucing, for remembering, for giving thanks.
Dale employed the term “Decoration Day.” I looked the phrase up and saw that it began in 1868 as a Civil War remembrance and later became what we know today as Memorial Day.
We agreed to set our own Decoration Day at the Spoelhof site next year. We will, and we’ll let you know when that date will be. You’re welcome to join us.
