Hope the trip is going good and everyone is doing pretty well SuziQ...
Was thinking about you today, when is your mom's service?
A friend of my sister's came up from the Coast for the wake on Friday night, and said when she walked in that there was entirely too much laughing going on! She also said that Mama would have LOVED it!
I hadn't seen some of those folks for almost 30 years, and there was a lot of catching up to do. One friend from college came and stood next to me in one of the parlors. I looked at him and gave him one of my most gracious GRITS hellos, then glanced away. He didn't move, so I greeted a couple of other folks. I glanced at him again, and smiled, but he still didn't move or say anything. I didn't recognize him until he said "I don't look the same with the gray hair, do I?" I looked at him and realized he was one of my best friends from college!! That happened all night long with folks I hadn't seen for years, and it was truly wonderful catching up with folks.
No one thought all the laughter was odd because we figured if Mama were there she'd be joining in. She loved a party, and being the center of attention, so this would have pleased her!
Thankfully there were no other services in the Funeral Home that night, so we didn't have to worry about disturbing any other families.
All our friends knew that we loved her and that it was truly a blessing that she died peacefully, in her sleep, and before she was completely ravaged by the disease.
The most emotional thing for me during the whole weekend was at the Funeral on Saturday morning. In a Catholic Mass, the coffin is usually covered with a white cloth, called a pall. Instead of the typical pall, the family decided to use the quilt that we made for her for her 75th birthday. It included squares for each of her kids, grandkids, and great grandkids. It truly covered her in love on that morning.