St. Paul's

I find the sanctuary and adjoining cemetery of St. Paul's Episcopal/Anglican Church in Sea Cow's Bay to be quite beautiful.

The above-ground tombs? graves? make me wonder every time I drive by, which is twice a day when I'm working. I know that above-ground graves are not uncommon in especially wet climates, or locations that fall below sea level. Still, having never been to New Orleans to see the famed above-ground cemeteries there, these few above-ground graves are rather different than what I had imagined.

I find the above-ground graves at St. Paul's especially curious, as they are intermingled with what are clearly more traditional gravesites, many of which are unmarked. Are the above-ground graves only for those who can afford them, while the less wealthy take the risk of damp decomposition, or being washed out of their final resting places? I imagine this is likely the case.

 I think I am especially fascinated with St. Paul's due to the large population of chickens that dwells in the cemetery. In times of heavy rain, it is common to see the chickens atop the raised graves, a bizarre image that will stay with me long after I move from the BVI. The day that I stopped to take pictures was rather dry, though, so while there were many roosters and chickens about, none deemed it necessary to move to the higher, drier locale of the above-ground graves.