I visited my ancestors today. John and Mary Coolidge came to the Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1630. They passed away in 1691. It is because of them that I was born in this land. Here lies the body of my honored grandfather.
One of their descendants, Joseph Coolidge, was working in the field one day when he heard a fight had broke out with some Redcoats in Lexington. He dropped his plough, shouldered his musket, and never came back. It was the year 1775, and it is because of him that I have tasted freedom. Here lies the body of my honored grandfather.
There were other Coolidges there, although I don’t know which of them I am related to directly. One of the graves was of a Kezia Coolidge, wife of Nathan, who died in 1804. Her grave had a beautiful poem on it, which articulated much of what I felt while I was there.
No human skill can warm that clay
Which the cold blast of death has froze
But God shall raise the lifeless form
His animating power disclose
I spoke with my ancestors. I don’t know if they heard me, but I thanked them for the lives they lived. I wished them peace and mercy, and told them that I hope God will bring us together in the world to come. As I left, I hoped and prayed that I might live a life that is worthy of the legacy that they left behind.
Our Father, who art in Heaven, hallowed by Thy Name. Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done, on Earth as it is in Heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespassed against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil, for Thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever and ever, amen.
A Mercy Case 
How cool is this!!! So you finally went there! It must have been an awesome experience! Next time I’m in Boston you must take me there too.
ps: Sumaiya and you are always in my duas….
Thanks for sharing… how incredible the experience must have been. I didn’t know your ancestors settled here originally!
Wow, Dave, this sounds like a really moving experience. I visited my great grandmother’s great grandmother’s cemetery a few years ago and was similarly moved. It made me feel that our lives are both fleeting and enduring.
amen!
[…] forefathers came to this continent from England in 1630. Many of them are buried in a cemetery in Watertown, Massachusetts. I once went to visit these distant ancestors, and on one of the graves was written the following […]