I left work early and drove to Naperville for my cousin Joe's funeral. Actually, his wife (Barb) is my blood cousin. But anyone who met Joe felt a kinship with him. It's remarkable that everyone who spoke of him talked about three things--how much he loved his family, his hearty laugh (and concomitant jokes), and how special he made them feel. He had a way of attending to you as if you were the only one there. He really listened (a rare gift). And oh how he laughed.
No wonder the line at visitation at the funeral home went through three viewing rooms and into the hallway, out on the porch, down the stairs and into the parking lot. No wonder that the line stayed that long for hours. No wonder that the visitation was supposed to end at 9 and actually ended after 10:15. No wonder at all, if you knew Joe.
Speaking of laughing--we sure did. Not just at "Joe stories," but because of some music. They played a CD of Josh Grobin, singing My Forever Love. It was superb and so fitting, but before they could turn off the CD, we heard Bob Dylan, "Everybody Must Get Stoned." Omigod we laughed.
____________________________________
I drove to Aurora to stay at Jim and Karen's house (brother and sis-in-law). They were in Florida but her parents were there. Frank and Katie made me feel so welcome, and since they had friends over for bridge, I went to my room, watched a little TV, and snored.
No comments:
Post a Comment