A bit weird, thought Lucy, wondering if the woman made a hobby of attending total strangers’ funeral services. They were listed in the newspaper, after all, and anyone who had a passing interest could come. It was because of those listings that the funeral director had advised them to make sure someone stayed at the house, since burglars were known to take advantage of those listings, too.
“What a nice thing to say, and thank you for coming,” said Lucy, passing the woman along to her husband, Bill, who was next in the reception line, and greeting Maria Dolan, who was Edna’s best friend and one of the few people at the reception who she actually knew.
“Edna seems to be holding up,” observed Maria, glancing at Lucy’s newly widowed mother-in-law, “but I’ll be keeping an eye on her and making sure she doesn’t get lonely. I know you Maine folks can’t be popping down to Florida every time she feels a bit blue.”
“Thank you so much, I really appreciate that,” said Lucy, who was finding her present situation somewhat surreal. It was only two weeks ago when Lucy was still clearing away the Christmas decorations that Edna had called, saying Bill Senior had suffered a heart attack, but was going to be just fine. She had insisted on downplaying the situation but Bill, an only child, had immediately booked a seat on the next flight to Tampa.
When he called Lucy from the hospital, he reported that Edna was either in denial or hadn’t understood the seriousness of the situation, as his father was in the ICU in critical condition and wasn’t expected to survive. He asked Lucy to inform the kids, and prepare them for their grandfather’s death. He also urged her to book a flight as soon as possible, as they would have to plan a funeral and support his mother. But even as her husband lay dying, Edna refused to believe there was any cause for concern and insisted that her son was making too much of a fuss. And when her husband finally did slip away in the final days of January, she opted for a quick cremation to be followed by a simple memorial service. “No need for the kids to come all this way, my Bill wouldn’t want a big fuss. He always said he hated funerals and didn’t even want to attend his own,” she said. “Elizabeth’s in Paris, Toby’s in Alaska, and Sara is just starting her new job in Boston and their granddad would want them to look to the future. Young people don’t want to waste time at some dreary memorial service, and why should they?”
But much to Edna’s surprise, the kids immediately made plans to come to Florida. Elizabeth insisted she had to say a final adieu to her bon pere, Toby and his wife Molly brought Patrick to remember his Poppop, and Sara, who was waiting to start her new job at the Museum of Science in Boston, offered to stay with her grandma for a week or two to help out. Zoe, the youngest, who was a still in college, wasn’t sure she’d be able to make it but in the end was able to postpone some exams and joined the grieving family that had gathered in Edna’s spacious ranch house.
Lucy wasn’t sure what to expect, but it turned out that people in Florida weren’t much different from folks in Tinker’s Cove, Maine. There was a steady stream of visitors offering sympathy, and many brought casseroles and desserts for the mourning family. And when they all finally gathered in the modern church, all angles and abstract stained glass, which was so different from the centuries-old church in Maine, with its clear glass windows and tall white steeple, the memorial service wasn’t dreary at all, but was instead a true celebration of Bill Senior’s life.
The service began with one of his favorite hymns, “For the Beauty of the Earth,” and was followed by a favorite Irish prayer, that he often repeated: “May you be in heaven before the devil knows you’re dead.” The kids all spoke of favorite memories they cherished of their grandfather. Elizabeth remembered the rainbow colored Life Savers he always carried and shared with her, Patrick remembered catching his first fish with Poppop’s help, Sara recalled the loud rock and roll he favored, that grew even louder as his hearing began to fail, and Zoe remembered countless games of checkers that Poppop somehow never won. Toby recalled that as a child he loved helping Poppop wash his car, but admitted the time he tried to do it himself, as a surprise, didn’t go well because the car was a convertible and the top was down, but Poppop just laughed and said it was about time the inside got washed, too.
Lucy knew all these stories, of course, except for Toby’s misadventure, which was a surprise to her. It was the minister’s eulogy, however, that revealed her father-in-law’s deep spirituality and faith, which she hadn’t appreciated. “Bill Stone was a man who practiced his faith through action,” said Rev. Florence Robb, “and he spent countless hours delivering Meals on Wheels, giving rides to the homebound, and working at the local food pantry. He helped at worship services, sometimes as an usher, sometimes reading the lessons and prayers. If something was needed, he provided it, often before it was missed. He replaced light bulbs, tightened screws, polished the brass, and those were only the things he did inside the church. Outside, he mowed the grass, weeded the flower beds, pruned the bushes and repaired the church sign when it was torn down in a storm. In his quiet way he made a huge difference in many people’s lives and he will be missed.” She paused and, voice breaking, added, “Greatly missed.”
All this was running through Lucy’s mind as she smiled and accepted the condolences
