A garden that began in grief has become, for volunteer Louise, a place of joy.
Crossbones Graveyard in Southwark once held the forgotten dead: sex workers, paupers, and countless others buried without honour. Today, under the care of Bankside Open Spaces Trust, it is both memorial and sanctuary, where wildflowers soften the ground and the air carries the hush of remembrance.
To call it her ‘happy place’ might sound unexpected. Yet that is exactly what Louise has found.
She joined the team at Crossbones after a long-term relationship ended, when she was looking for something new. ‘I didn’t want to inadvertently fill the time moping about, or just watching TV at home, so I wanted to find a fun activity,’ she explains. Drawn to both history and the chance to spend time among plants, especially since she didn’t have a garden of her own, the role at Crossbones felt like the right fit. She applied straight away, and it soon rooted itself deeply in her life.
During the isolation of the Covid years, the garden took on new meaning. ‘Crossbones is my happy place,’ she recalls, ‘so throughout Covid when I couldn’t visit, I would visualise the garden to help me feel a little less confined.’ In those long months of distance, the thought of Crossbones was not only a memory but a promise: of return, of community, of something enduring.
For Louise, the most moving moments come during the monthly vigils, held on the 23rd at 7pm. Candles are lit, incense curls into the air, and ribbons are tied to the gate, each of them carrying wishes and blessings. Louise treasures being part of these special evenings, which are sacred and restorative.
There are other moments of spectacle too: Morris dancers filling the garden with colour and sound, or the Holly Man at Twelfth Night and the Green Man on St George’s Day, brought to life each year by the Lions Part theatre company.
And then there are the smaller, quieter moments. Louise delights in simply being among the plants tended by the volunteer gardeners. Just being there, noticing the ripple of tadpoles in the pond, is often joy in itself.
Louise knows volunteering can feel daunting for newcomers. ‘It can be really overwhelming to get started, because it feels like you need be able to commit a lot of time, and learn everything all at once,’ she reflects, ‘but in my experience that’s not the case.’She gained confidence by being paired with more experienced volunteers, and peace of mind knowing she could find shifts that worked alongside her full-time corporate job. Her advice is straightforward: ‘Find somewhere you think is interesting, and give it a go!’
Simple words, but a powerful invitation. Louise’s story is proof: she gave an interesting place a go, and it became her happy place. Where might yours be? Through volunteering, you may just find it waiting for you.
To learn more about volunteering with Bankside Open Spaces Trust, visit their website here.