The Concordia Cemetery

The Concordia Cemetery


1.
The Concordia Cemetery is across the street
from the L&J Restaurant,
one of the great Mexican restaurants
and watering holes in El Paso.
I had taken Luis here years before
and he wanted to go back to visit
John Wesley Hardin's grave.

Concordia is an old west graveyard--
nameless and forgotten graves for the poor
and not so poor;
a barren Chinese graveyard enclosed
by a stone fence with rectangular blocks
of concrete sitting atop the bones;
lots of tombs for the richer Catholic dead;
a well manicured grassy section
for the Jewish dead;
a similar section for the Methodist.

The dead are always dead
no matter who they are.
The dust and rocks and burrowing owls
tell us this truth.
Likewise the volunteer cactus
and desert trees and weeds.
We are all spectators of the dead.
A very strange place on a hot day.
Very strange thoughts.

The Concordia's main claim to fame
is that John Wesley Hardin is buried there.
A jail surrounds his grave--
not for any symbolic reason,
but because several years ago
citizens of his birthplace tried
to steal his bones.
They wanted to transport the murderer
back to East Texas
for purely monetary reasons.
JWH is a tourist draw.
Such is the weird El Paso news.

2.
The Concordia Cemetery is across the street from the L&J Restaurant, one of the great Mexican restaurants and watering holes in El Paso. I had taken Luis here years before and he wanted to go back to visit John Wesley Hardin's grave. Concordia is an old west graveyard--nameless and forgotten graves for the poor and not so poor; a barren Chinese graveyard enclosed by a stone fence with rectangular blocks of concrete sitting atop the bones; lots of tombs for the richer Catholic dead; a well manicured grassy section for the Jewish dead; a similar section for the Methodist. The dead are always dead no matter who they are. The dust and rocks and burrowing owls tell us this truth. Likewise the volunteer cactus and desert trees and weeds. We are all spectators of the dead. A very strange place on a hot day. Very strange thoughts.

The Concordia's main claim to fame is that John Wesley Hardin is buried there. A jail surrounds his grave--not for any symbolic reason, but because several years ago citizens of his birthplace tried to steal his bones. They wanted to transport the murderer back to East Texas for purely monetary reasons. JWH is a tourist draw. Such is the weird El Paso news.


Bobby Byrd

Posted over on his site, White Panties and Dead Friends
1. Line breaks by Glenn Buttkus.
2. The actual prose composed by Bobby on his blog.