The AIDS Memorial Grove in Golden Gate Park is simply breathtaking. I have tried to locate the memorial for some time but have gotten lost in between the Conservatory of Flowers and Hippie Hill, which is exactly where it lies. I visited the Memorial once before so I had a good idea of what it was like and what I was in for, but this time around was completely different than the first. It was so much more amazing than I remember. I went around 4:30 PM when the sun was just about to set and the lighting was just perfect. The last sunshine of the day peaked through the trees and highlighted each flowers unique form and color. The path lead you down to a circle of names of people who had been taken by their loved ones, and as you went further it brought you into a calm darkness under tall trees.
The AIDS Memorial Grove “is a dedicated space in the national landscape where millions of Americans touched directly or indirectly by AIDS can gather to heal, hope, and remember. For all the promising prospects on the horizon, AIDS continues to invade our lives, violate our past, and rob us of our comfortable assumptions about the future”.
In late 1988, a small group of San Francisco residents representing a devastated community were looking for a positive way to express their collective grief. They envisioned a serene, natural setting suitable for memorial services or individual mourning and remembrance. From this initial concept, a team of architects, landscapers, designers, and lay people volunteered countless hours to create a living tribute to those lost to the disease.
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