Photo Credit: Onkel Wart

Last week, I spent a few pleasurably-languid hours reading Neil Gaiman’s “The Graveyard Book.” Gaiman’s wonderful tale of a young boy – Nobody Owens – who is nurtured and protected by the ghostly denizens of a graveyard, transported me into another world, and made me contemplate about life, death and the afterlife.

I had experienced the same feelings once before. That was while reading Emily Dickinson’s “Because I could not stop for Death.”

We paused before a house that seemed A swelling of the ground; The roof was scarcely visible, The cornice but a mound. Since then ’tis centuries; but each Feels shorter than the day I first surmised the horses’ heads Were toward eternity. (Lines 13-20)

Graveyards are oases of tranquility in this chaotic world. They are places where some people finally find – in Earth’s welcoming bosom – the peace and solitude they craved for their entire lives. Is there really an afterlife? No one really can tell for sure. But it sure would be great if there were one.

Here are a few images inspired by the evocative imagery that Gaiman conjures up in his book. All the images were released under various Creative Commons Licenses by their photographers.

Image Credit: Denise O’ Brien

Image Credit: Smitty

Image Credit: Robert Catalano

Image Credit: Suzanna

Image Credit: Lucid Nightmare

Image Credit: Howzey

Image Credit: Sidereal

Image Credit: Casch52

Image Credit: Brandy Buck

Image Credit: Elephi Pelephi

Image Credit: Laura Burlton

Image Credit: Frederik M

Image Credit: Carl Jones

Image Credit: Onkel Wart

Image Credit: E3000

Image Credit: Hugovk

Image Credit: Snake Eyes

Image Credit: Bildungsr0man

Image Credit: Dizzy Girl

Image Credit: John Althouse Cohen

Image Credit: Sighthound

Image Credit: Rachel Sian

Image Credit: Shots at Random

Image Credit: Anders B.

Image Credit: Hugovk

Image Credit: Carl Jones

Image Credit: Mike Boehmer

Image Credit: La Cola De Mi Perro

Image Credit: Casch52

Image Credit: Orvaratli

Image Credit: Carl Jones

Image Credit: Andrew Lee

Image Credit: Autumn Sonata

Image Credit: Stuck in Customs

Image Credit: Sabriirmak

Image Credit: Zoriah

Image Credit: Remuz

Image Credit: Autumn Sonata

Image Credit: Lucid Nightmare

Update: Mark VanderJagt sent in this great photo that he took last fall in Denver, Colorado.