Sculpture Garden

When I travel, I usually know where I want to go and what I want to see. However, when I geocache, it's the sport that takes me to places that I wouldn't necessarily even know existed. This is one of the reasons geocaching appeals to me so much. I've seen things that I never would have known were there without this silly game. It takes me to places right there, a place that I would have driven right by, were it not for that silly plastic container that's hidden right over there.

And that's where the Living Memorial Sculpture Garden comes in. I passed this garden on my way to Klamath Falls, Oregon late last month. There were two geocaches there and I put them on the back burner, figuring I'd check them out on the way back down after the funeral I was attending. When I came back down two days laters, I stopped and explored the gardens. The Living Memorial Sculpture Garden was created by Vietnam veteran and sculpture artist, Dennis Smith and was dedicated as a war memorial, but the metal sculptures seem to evoke a powerful sense of peace. The garden is located along Hwy 97 northeast of Weed, California.

I parked the car in the large dirt lot and started walking, as I was a good half mile away from either geocache that I wanted to find. I kept passing different sculptures and each one had their own unique perspective on what war was like and how people deal with war and all the other shit that goes along with war.

There was a sculpture from the POW/MIA's perspective, as well as the KIA perspective. Not so much the person killed but more of what and who were left behind. Have you thought about what nurses and surgeons go through as they attempt to stitch up all of these soldiers that get maimed during a war? There's a sculpture for that as well.

I think one of the things that was so compelling about these sculptures were the additions that were obviously added after the fact by visitors, many who were probably veterans themselves. Somehow, this particular garden reached out to them and spoke to them individually. You can see some of these tokens in the second photo of the POW/MIA.

Having never been to Washington, D.C. to see any of the war memorials there, I can't speak to those, but I have seen the traveling Vietnam Wall twice in the past 15 years. Each time it has been an incredibly moving experience. Both times I've seen the wall, I've looked up a brother of a friend of mine who I know is on the wall. I've done an etching of his name both times and taken a photo of his name. I'm too young to have served, just barely, and I'm very thankful I didn't have to go over there. I know war changes people and not always for the good.

I can't do justice in words to this garden. Here's a link to the rest of the photos I took when I logged my find at one of the geocaches I found.