Xuan Chi Diep: The Hanoi Horseman

 

A Sunday, Nov. 2 visit to Magnolia Cemetery produced a nice variety of bird photographs, including the effervescent Roseate Spoonbill. See my "Bustling with Birds" post here. 

And a striking Little Blue Heron. 

But what most intrigued me was this sign leaning against a tall magnolia tree. “In Memory of Xuan Chi Diep” it reads. There’s no date, no context, just what you see. 

If I ever noticed the sign before, I do not remember. That’s one of the things I like about Magnolia Cemetery and its 150 acres: seeing something new, though I’ve been here a few hundred times over the years. 

The memorial sign, dislodged from the base that once held it straight and tall, and the Magnolia tree that now supports it are located next to a unique white zinc monument that I wrote about and photographed in my 2014 book, “In the Arms of Angels: Magnolia Cemetery- Charleston’s Treasure of History, Mystery and Artistry.” More on that book here. 

So what’s the story here? There must be one. I decided to use the holiday season break from my teaching job to find out. And find out I did!