Funerals

A bizarre title, I'm sure some of y'all are wondering what exactly I'm thinking about, but I'll explain it all in a short amount of time. Today was a pretty laid back. I'd like to think I got a lot accomplished at camp. I'm trying to fully step into my new role, and take off in a dead sprint. I want to do the best job anyone in my shoes has ever done, and even more importantly, I don't want to let the camp family down. They've really accepted me as their own in the last 10 years, and hugely so in the last 12 months. Well, back to today, I worked from about 9 till 12, did the lunch thing, went back to the office and left again at about 1:30. We had a distant cousin pass away a couple of days ago. I'd met her several times, but didn't know her real well. It didn't really effect me all that much. I believe it was only the 2nd funeral that I've been to since my Grandmother passed away. The other was for a really good friend's Grandmother. I am not big on funerals, I don't like to expose myself to the sadness that many funerals bring, I guess its some way of protecting myself from emotions.

I decided to go today, mostly because I wanted to meet some of the family that I probably never have. I also wanted to see some of the people I used to know so well, and now don't see hardly enough. I think my Dad wanted me to go too, so I felt somewhat obligated to do it. Those of you who know me well enough, know what I think about religion. I know it's there, I know it hits some people in different ways, it just really hasn't hit me yet. I'm not saying it never will, just to this point it hasn't. The funeral was graveside at an old cemetery between Ingram and Mountain Home. Sunset cemetery, it's where my Grandmother was buried. As a matter of fact, the tent that the funeral home had set up to cover the immediate family was covering her grave. There were some emotions and remembrances of my Granny while I was there, but mostly good thoughts. I only cried once when she died, and that was at the funeral. I remember feeling ashamed because I didn't think I showed my emotions enough. There comes a point after a death when people have to get past the shock and the sad feelings, and see what a triumphant life the person lived, and remember all the good times. Standing at that cemetery today I didn't think of all the sad thoughts, I thought of the happy ones I remembered of my Grandmother.

Well this wasn't supposed to be all that much about my Grandmother, but I kind of got off topic. I originally wanted to say that I feel good for going to the funeral. As good as you can when there is death involved. I met about 20 people who I had either never met, or hadn't seen in years, and I learned more about the cousin that passed away. Sounds like she led an amazing life in her earlier years, traveling all over the world. I have aspirations of doing the same. She was an old maid, meaning she was never married. So she along with her sister always ran together, doing all the traveling, baking, visiting, etc. etc. etc.

It made me hope that I'm not that old man who ends up never getting married. I'll keep my fingers crossed. Surely there is some girl out there who is lucky enough ;). (cocky).

Anyway, I was going to go more into the religion at the funeral, and the songs everyone was singing. I won't though, I'll leave it at that. It was a nice day, and as nice of a funeral as can be expected. I think my lack of knowledge on religion was fairly clear, I was the only one not singing the songs that everyone else seemed to know by heart. I, however, could out rap any of them!