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One of Oregon's most unique cemeteries, Eugene Masonic is a combination park, historical site,  habitat for native plant species and burial ground.

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May at Eugene Masonic Cemetery

Shoot Date: 5-7-2010

Beside an upward trail, false Solomon's seal brightens the view.  The cemetery is home to many of the native species of flora found in nearby forests, such as fawn lilies, bleeding hearts, Oregon iris, inside-out flower and camas, in addition to more cultivated flowers like hellebores, daffodils, lilac and crocus.

A headstone is caught in the inexorable, slow rise of the thimbleberry foliage that will eventually engulf it... that is, until fall comes and the marker is exposed once again.

May is the month for wild roses, which are currently blooming throughout the cemetery.

At the Fielding McMurry plot at the top of the hill, wild orange columbine add color to an area dominated by hellebore and crocus just a few short months before.  This plot also has an informational plaque noting the donation of the cemetery land by Mr. McMurry... and explaining that just down the slope, his daughter taught at the local one-room schoolhouse, where skunks and rattlesnakes were occasional uninvited visitors.

A headstone plays peek-a-boo, hidden behind grasses and the last blooms of pink and blue wood hyacinths.

A basin-shaped memorial, unique among the cemetery monuments, and two broad, decorated headstones sit among the billowing greenery, watching over the yearly cycle of life here.