Mer and I flew out to Maine for Gram’s funeral. The flight was generously supplied by Carleton (Gramps), so we were able to make it. We left out of Pittsburgh on Wednesday, and flew to Portland via Washington, D.C. We got in and picked up our rental car and were on the road by about 11:30 or so. Our car was huge – they did not have my economy car in stock, so we got an upgrade. This car was nice – it had satellite radio (all 80s, all the time!), heated seats, heated steering wheel, and electric everything. I almost turned down the wrong way getting on the turnpike because I was trying to find the window control for the toll booth. The tool booth guy looked at me strangely – he probably though I was drunk. Anyway, we did make it safely to Rockland and to Rankin Street by about 1:30 a.m., where we were greeted by Mer’s parents.

Gram’s funeral service was on Thursday, and we were up in time to be ready for it. The service was held in Gram and Gramp’s church, the First Baptist Church of Rockland. I have always liked this church, and I was glad the funeral could be held there. Leona had organized the service before she died, so it was special because it honored her and her wishes. We opened by singing “Beneath the Cross of Jesus.” Then Dale (Mer’s dad) read 1 Corinthians 15:42-58:

So will it be with the resurrection of the dead. The body that is sown is perishable, it is raised imperishable; it is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory; it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power; it is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body.

If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body. So it is written: “The first man Adam became a living being”; the last Adam, a life-giving spirit. The spiritual did not come first, but the natural, and after that the spiritual. The first man was of the dust of the earth, the second man from heaven. As was the earthly man, so are those who are of the earth; and as is the man from heaven, so also are those who are of heaven. And just as we have borne the likeness of the earthly man, so shall we bear the likeness of the man from heaven.

I declare to you, brothers, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed— in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed. For the perishable must clothe itself with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality. When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come true: “Death has been swallowed up in victory.”

“Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?” The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.

I have always loved the “Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?” – wonderful verses at all times, but very appropriate at a funeral. Logan and Kasey, the great-grandsons, then read Philippians 3:20-21 and 1 John 3:2-3:

But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body.

Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when he appears,we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. Everyone who has this hope in him purifies himself, just as he is pure.

At this point, Meredith and I were supposed to sing a duet of a modern hymn, “The Holy Heart.” It is a very pretty hymn, and on good days I can actually sing it fairly well with Meredith doing harmony. On this day, however, I was still recovering from a long cold, and my voice was shot. As a compromise, I read the hymn’s words so that people could understand the hymn better, and then Meredith played it on piano and sang it as a solo. (I think she did a wonderful job, but I am biased.)

Dale then got back up to read an excerpt from a sermon by Spurgeon (a 19th-century British preacher). Dale has a wonderful voice for reading. The basic gist (as far as I remember a month later) was that we are foolish to wish for our loved ones back when they have have died trusting in Jesus and have gone to Him. Since our loved ones are in the presence of God and free from all sickness and sadness, it is foolish (in the big picture) to want them back here on Earth.

We then sang “What a Day That Will Be,” and Pastor Gabe (Gram and Gramp’s pastor) got up to give a homily (a short sermon). He talked about Leona’s life and how she had served at the church and had been a constant encouragement to him. He said Leona always encouraged him to preach the truth of the Gospel, even when it was hard, and he had appreciated it. He talked about how she faced her cancer with strength and confidence, knowing that Jesus would not leave her. He did admit there were some times of Gram being scared, but that her eyes never lost their hope. He also relayed how she insisted that he preach the Gospel at her funeral, and that nothing would make her happier than if some people trusted in Jesus as a result. I have liked Pastor Gabe from the first time I heard him; he is open and honest and sticks to what the Bible has to say as best as he understands it. He did very well this day.

Before I forget to include it, Gram’s favorite verse was printed in the order of worship. It is Isaiah 41:10:

Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God; I will strengthen thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.

We finished the service with the hymn “Ten Thousand Times Ten Thousand” and then we (the family) went to make a receiving line. The church was full, even on a Thursday afternoon. Gram was well loved, indeed. Mer and I stood and shook hands (some people refrained from shaking my recently sick hand), and tried to be polite and appreciative of people we had never met. The people were very kind. One lighthearted moment that I took delight in, even on this occasion:  one very kind man told Meredith in a well-intentioned way, “You have a lovely voice and sang beautifully. Thank you for adding to this sad day.”

Once just the family was left, the funeral director opened the casket one more time for the family to see Leona. She looked as good as any body I have ever seen in a casket, but Mer and I both agree that when you see dead people, they are not really there. The real them is gone, and just the shell is left, and it does not look quite right. This is not really surprising since the soul and spirit have gone on, but it always catches me slightly off-guard. We both much preferred the portrait that was made from a photograph of Gram – it looked like the real her, with life and spark in the eyes.

We then moved the casket to the hearse for the drive to the graveyard. I was honored to be a pallbearer. There were no issues getting the coffin into the car, and we all lined up and made the short drive to the Rockland cemetery. I did have a little trouble in helping with the casket at the gravesite. We had to walk it past the open grave, and my side was very narrow and was not level. I’m afraid I stumbled a bit, but the coffin was in place, so I was able to help ease it on to the supports without falling in to the hole myself.

Pastor Gabe then prayed, and we stood for a short while. The cemetery is located in a beautiful setting, right at the foot of some small mountains, with lots of trees around. The day was cold and windy and cloudy, but that was all right; it would be a bit strange to bury a loved one on a sunny and warm day.

We then headed back to Rankin Street, where Mer and Carlene and Dale laid out some finger foods, and some others in the family brought along some food as well. I grabbed a quick bite to eat, but then excused myself. Between the really late night and the illness I was almost over, I was very tired. So, I went upstairs to my room and slept.

Mer made sure I was awake in time for the whole family going to a nearby restaurant, the Offshore. We had a semi-private dining area, and the tables were pushed together, so it held all 20 (or so) of us. I think it was good to gather as a group and eat together. While not an inappropriately rollicking time, we had a nice time, and it is my hope that it helped Gramps to be surrounded by that many people who love him.

The next couple of days were low-key. On Friday, Mer and I wandered over to Bricks, a local restaurant, to get some lunch. We where about halfway though when Dale, Carlene, and Carleton walked it. It was not planned, but it was a happy thing to happen. We grabbed some more chairs, and all sat together. The woman who owned the restaurant saw Carleton, and, knowing Leona had recently died, hugged him, her eyes welling with tears.  At another restaurant the next day, a server asked where Leona was. Carleton explained with a simple “She’s gone,” and the woman gasped and apologized profusely. Carleton and Leona liked to go to the same several eateries, and got to know the people that worked there. I’m afraid these kinds of encounters probably happened to Gramps several more times after we left.

Mer and I walked around Rockland, as we always do when we are there. It is a very pretty oceanside town, and we love to walk the main street. After our stroll, we went home and got the car and made our way to visit Gram’s grave. It was pretty amazing – everything was perfect. The grass was all in place, and you could never tell that Gram had been laid to rest just the day before. This day was very sunny and pretty, so Mer and I wandered around looking at tombstones. We discovered that people in Rockland die early (in their 30s or 40s) or late (80s or later).

Saturday, no one had plans for the morning, so Mer and I arranged to meet my dad in Augusta, at the Augusta House of Pancakes. It turns out Dad and we were both sitting in the parking lot for 15 minutes or so, because we were on opposite sides of the lot, but we met up at last in the restaurant. We had a tasty breakfast, and got to visit with Dad for over an hour. I wish Kellee had been able to come, but she works Saturdays. We did not get to see Jeremy, either – he got a place a few months back. We just did not have time to see folks from my neck of the woods, but I am grateful that we were able to eat with Dad. That meant much to me.

Back in Rockland, Dale and Carlene and Gramps and I and Mer piled in Dale’s rented mini-van (which he was concerned I would not ride in because he thought it was an SUV), and Mer’s cousin and her family went ahead of us, and we headed out to the Owl’s Head General Store. The Store really is just a small general store, but they have a very small restaurant which makes wonderful hamburgers. We managed to get all nine of us at one table, and we had a very good lunch, as well as getting to chat.

Later in the evening, I was feeling peckish, so Mer and I went to the Rockland Cafe for a light(er) supper. And yes, we did pick up some whoopie pies for dessert. It turns out the Rockland Cafe has some very good whoopie pies. We split four over two days, which is pretty restrained for us.

Mer and Dale and Carlene went out that evening to see Julie and Julia, a movie about Julia Child and a writer who was making all the recipes in Julia’s cookbook. They enjoyed it. I stayed home, and Gramps and I talked for over two hours at the kitchen table. We talked for a long time about Carleton’s 30+ years working for Central Maine Power and how he came to retire slightly early (they bought him out). After awhile, we talked some about Gram. Gramps told me how it was the hardest thing he has ever gone through (and keep in mind that he served in the Pacific in World War 2). We talked about how wonderful Gram was, and how they had always planned on Carelton going first (he is two years older and suffers from bronchitis). Gramps said he is staying in the house, and I support him in this. I was honored that Gramps talked with me for so long. I hope I was able to help him a little just by listening. He is a good and great man – I want him to be as well as he can be.

I finally had to go to bed, and Mer came home shortly after. We grabbed about two hours’ sleep, and we were up at 1:30 or so. We had to get to Portland and return the car and get to the gate for a 6:00 flight. We had no trouble getting back to Pittsburgh, and the two-hour drive home was a bit sleepy, but without incident. We got home early in the afternoon, and we both took long naps. It was good to be home in Maine again, but I am sorry for the occasion. I’ll miss Gram, and Rockland won’t quite be the same anymore.