Roadside crosses ease the pain of surviving family

For nearly twenty years, I have driven the same route to visit my parents. The drive is always peaceful and usually takes two hours. I rarely see anything extraordinary or unusual like strange animals or UFOs.

But on my latest visit, I did notice some new roadside memorials. These can be seen along many different roads across America. Since childhood, I can remember seeing them along highways and country roads. While in Kindergarten, three crosses were staked into a road near my school. I asked my father about them. He told me it was how grieving family members remembered loved ones who died in automobile accidents.

I have been making the trip to my parents’ home since the early ‘90s. Although many memorials are withered and beaten by harsh weather, they remain standing. Some are plain crosses while others have flags, pictures, pinwheels, and other trinkets attached to them.

I had read somewhere that many people dislike roadside memorials because they consider crosses a religious symbol. These same people claim religious artifacts have no business on state property. However, one memorial has stood out in my mind for the past nineteen years. Why? Because it honors a deceased state trooper. 

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