Beginning with Mount Auburn Cemetery in Cambridge, there are several cemeteries in the United States that offer beautiful and peaceful landscapes. This past weekend, I visited one of them, Woodlawn Cemetery in New York. Established in 1863, this vast 400-acre cemetery feels like an exquisitely maintained garden. It also resembles a botanical garden, featuring many valuable large trees. It has even been designated a National Historic Landmark.

Perhaps it’s a characteristic of this particular cemetery, but I was astonished by the sheer number and opulence of the mausoleums. Could this be because it’s a cemetery in New York, a city where wealth accumulates? The intricate designs of each mausoleum unmistakably tell the story of the buried occupants’ riches. Perhaps the idea is, “Since you can’t take wealth to the afterlife once you’re dead, you might as well spend it here.”

I stopped by the grave of Herman Melville, the author of Moby Dick. Among the graves in this cemetery, his was small and modest, yet many pens were placed on his tombstone. Perhaps visitors wish to become novelists, hoping to emulate him. I saw whale toys there. It was a small gesture, but seeing a glimpse of communication between the dead and the living warmed my heart.