I cleaned a stranger’s dirty grave for free – trolls say it’s disrespectful
Opinions have been divided over a woman after she revealed she cleaned someone else’s gravestone for free to make it look clean.
In a clip that has been viewed nearly 90 million times, TikTok user @_the_beautiful_girl showed her how she scrubbed it until it shined.
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In the video, the woman rolled a pink ball and apparently chose an overgrown grave at random.
She shared, “Let’s clean a random grave. Who do you think is buried here? Let’s clean it up and find out.
“I have so many questions. How old is this grave? It looks like it’s been here for 500 years.
“How did this grave get so dirty? Whoa! There’s a tree growing out of it.
“This transformation is very difficult for me, but I believe that everyone deserves a beautiful grave.”
After applying some pink foam to the cross on the grave, she scrubbed it until it looked bright white.
She also removed all the leaves and other debris from the gravestone with a leaf blower and then cleaned it with soap and water.
Thanks to her cleaning work, she was able to find information about the woman on whose gravestone the stone lay.
She explained, “Okay, I did some research.
“There’s a woman buried here, and she has two brothers just like me. I have to make her family proud.
“Maria Lugo Texador. She died on January 19, 1990.”
TikToker @_the_clean_girl then showed off the before and after photos, calling her work “satisfying.”
While the results were impressive, they divided some users online.
Someone wrote: “The respect and the disrespect at the same time.”
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Another added: “I don’t know what to think, this feels wrong.”
However, there were also people who supported her and defended her act of kindness.
One of them said: “It may seem disrespectful, but imagine coming to visit as a family member and arriving at a beautiful and clean grave. I would feel so happy.”
Can you clean a stranger’s grave?
MANY of us have visited cemeteries where gravestones have been covered with plant material such as moss, lichen and mold.
You can remove this dirt, but it is important to do this carefully to avoid damaging the stone.
Although many headstones are made of stone, older headstones can be surprisingly fragile. They may have hidden stress cracks, flaking layers, or other age-related problems.
Susan Dunham of Maine Cemetery Maintenance said: “Anyone who wishes to clean gravestones and markers in a cemetery must ask permission from a descendant, the sexton, the cemetery manager, or the city, in that order.
“If you are not sure who to ask, go to the manager of your local cemetery and ask.
“It is not acceptable to clean gravestones yourself without permission, without learning the proper methods, or without using approved materials.
“However, you may clean the stones of your own family members.”
