Under a pale blue sky, basked in warm sunlight, sits two granite headstones. They lay side-by-side, weathered and damaged by age and the English weather which has never been all that forgiving. Yellowing grass grows out of control at the base of the stones, untouched by humans.

Few people know the story of the people who came to lie together.

Their story faded to history, taken over by the likes of Bonnie and Clyde who were more notorious then they could ever be. No one knows the love they shared, how short their time together was, and just what happened to them. Those that do know, know only part of the story. They know what the newspapers reported, the stories shared through word of mouth.

The reality is worse than many know.

Some of their story has been lost. Lost to time. There are gaps that will never be filled, questions that will never be answered. That's the way it should be. Not every part of a story needs to be shared, not every detail needs to be uncovered.

Those who pass by on a walk through the churchyard can just make out the inscription, now faded and obscured by the years of moss embedded into the stone. If they can make out the words, all they find is a simple inscription. It doesn't matter if no one else understands what it means because they do, and that's all that matters.

Words etched into stone can tell more of a story than newspapers or gossip. It tells the real story. The truth, no matter who it might hurt. Those words will remain on that stone until time steps in, but the stone will always remember.

If you were to find these stones, stay a while. You might just hear the true story whispering in the breeze or rustling in the leaves nearby. Remember to look up at the sky every once in a while, watch the rolling clouds or the kaleidoscope of colours. Enjoy the small things for they won't last forever.

In an old English churchyard sits two weathered, granite stones. Separated in life, but reunited in death. Freedom became theirs. Eventually.

Emily Jane Masters                                       Christopher 'Kit' Jones

1908-1968                                                             1908-1926

Who craved freedom.                                           Who gave it to her.

~~~

First Published - February 16th, 2024