This is my grandfather George Swanson's grave at the Los Angeles National Cemetery, which I visited with Deena, Chris and Dean on Dec. 28, three days after the 45th anniversary of his death. I'll never forget Christmas day in 1965, when my mom got the call that he had died at the Sawtelle Veterans Home, a facility run by the Veteran's Administration not too far from the cemetery.
I'll also never forget the day of his funeral: the rain poured down as we sat under a canopy at his gravesite, the Army Honor Guard fired three rifle volleys in his honor, folded the flag and gave it to my mom. It was a very sad day, much like the second half of his life, after my grandmother divorced him. He was kind, gentle person we didn't see very often -- usually on Christmas eve because Christmas day was always spent at grandma's house. My mom has trouble remembering many things, but her memory of her dad and how much he loved his "Skeeter," as he called her, is very vivid. I shot these photos for her.
On a less somber note, after our visit to the cemetery, we hung out at Chris's apartment in Westwood, then headed to Santa Monica and enjoyed dinner and a beautiful sunset. I posted a few photos in a new Santa Monica gallery. Here is one of my favorites:
1 comment:
oh my crap that last photo is spectacular!
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