Saturday, January 23, 2010

Remember Me?

  Hey, I'm here again.

  My brother passed away, that was the reason for my absence.  I held his hand as he went, and wouldn't have chosen to be anywhere else on earth at that moment.  And that's kinda the way that went... there's lots more story, but if you don't mind... I'll just keep this one to myself.  Alrighty?  Alright.   Sal and I want to thank you all for the love, prayers and cards that were sent.  It meant a lot to us.  A whole lot.

So anyhow my cousin Carla and I are standing in the back of the funeral home prior to the service and I said to her.  "I am being cremated.  I've made my decision.  I wanna be deep roasted, poured in a box, and shoved in the ground or shook out on the ground or pitched into the wind.  I don't really care... but I ain't gonna be a corpse in a box."

 She thought that was a pretty good plan and said "I don't imagine I'll have much say in it.. and they'll probably embalm me and put me in a coffin, so... I made this really incredible mermaid costume one year.  It's kinda famous.  I want to  be buried in that with my tail flipped over the edge of the coffin during visitation."

I stood there looking at her.

She looked at me.

I said... "That is so freakin' awesome it defies all meaning of the word "awesome"."

She said... "I think so too."









.

15 comments:

The Retired One said...

ONLY you could find such humor in such a sad situation, Jace...
So sorry to hear about your brother.
I truly am.
Our siblings are the closest carbon genetic copy to ourselves than anyone else on earth..so when we lose one of our siblings, a part of us has passed too.
I am so glad you got to be with him when it occurred, though. I have been lucky enough to be holding both of my parents hands as they passed as well as my husband's parents...and it is indeed a privilege. It is an intimate interaction that cannot be explained to anyone who hasn't "been there".
So, many, many {{hugs}} to you and your entire family, and may his memories keep you smiling for many years. He would want it that way.

Unknown said...

Glad to have you back... nuff said...

Scope said...

I had misread your post to say, "My cousin Carl" no 'a' at the end.

Made the mermaid costume quote even better. And guessin' that would make it famous.

Sorry about your brother. Parent's loved the CD @ Christmas.

mrscravitz said...

So glad to have you back too!

quiltmom anna said...

Jace,
Just want to pass on my condolences to you and yours in the loss of your brother. May you continue to find yourself surrounded by the love and support of others.
It is so true that one needs to tell the people that we love how much they are valued and loved.
Regards,
Anna

SkylersDad said...

Hey Jace, thanks for letting us know what was going on. I am sorry for the loss of your brother, I come from a very small family, just my sister and I left. I don't know what I will do when I lose her.

There never is anything good to say to someone when they lose a family member, or friend. Just know that there are those of us who are out here that care, even though we don't really know you.

Char said...

So sorry for your loss, Jace.
{{{hugs}}}.

How do you walk in a mermaid costume? Just wondering.

dianne said...

i grieve with thee

Cora said...

Oh, Cowguy, I'm so very, very sorry.

But you've got me thinking now.... Maybe I'll be buried in my Marvin the Martian costume. Yeeeeeeeaaaaaah baby! :-)

Sass said...

Missed you, Cowguy.

Bunches.

Vicky said...

ILY

Cowguy said...

You guys are great. Thank you so much!

Cynthia L. H. said...

I am so sorry for the loss of your brother.

About the Mermaid Costume Idea: (which I think is so innovative...)
...that is REALLY thinkin' outside of the box.

MommaKiss said...

Very very sorry for your loss.

And for the record, I want to be cremated, too. But your cousin's costume idea is pretty wicked.

Sassy Britches said...

Big hugs to you about your brother's passing. Thanks for keeping us updated.

I'm so with you on the cremation thing, but dang if the mermaid idea doesn't make me want to rethink things a bit!