Finally. Shut up.

I love cemeteries. I walk my dogs in a local cemetery and solve plot problems while I walk. And occasionally I come across a charming headstone such as the one pictured above.

Look closely at the words above Rosetta’s name: “Finally. Shut up.”

I like headstone humor, but this is a little strange even for me. And probably because I play a lot with words in my head—with the various meanings a single word can take on—I can’t quite make out what Rosetta (or is it T. Jay?) is trying to say here.

Is “Finally / Shut up” a message from Rosetta to T. Jay? Note that Rosetta hasn’t been buried yet. Is she glad she’s had peace and quiet in the years since T. Jay left?

Or is this a message from T. Jay? A last parting shot? Or maybe a loving jab? “Finally. For me, at least, you have shut up.”

Or what about this creepy possibility: Is this message for when Rosetta is one day interred—that is, finally shut up underground?