JANUARY 2024

My son Stacy drove me home to my brothers funeral on Thursday. Spent the weekend in Pittsburgh area. the weather was beautiful for the service. Friday it was 66 degrees and sunny. Crazy PA weather. It was old home week for me. I visited with friends and family who I haven't seen in 25 years,my childhood friends showed up at the funeral home for support. Gotta love old friends!!!!! The service was wonderful. 21 gun salute for a great soldier!!!! Taps (that song tears my heart out) And the folding of the flag from the casket. At the very end of the service as we were putting roses on the casket, Ted's wife was in a wheelchair and the boys were carrying her in the chair to the casket (there was mud everywhere) as she bent forward the 3 spent shell casings (at a military funeral, they give 3 spent shell casings, wrapped together, one for God, family and country) the casings fell off her lap into the open grave. Everyone went wild...as usually Teddy had the last word...he wanted those casings...a final tribute to a great man. Just as he would have wanted. Laughter not tears...

Then a dinner at the church of wonderful Pittsburgh food items and Lady Lock Cookies (of course). Stac & I started the long 4 hours drive home, arrived home right before dark.

Thanks for the prayers...

Very often funerals turn into reunions of people who haven't seen one another in years.
Several years ago, the wife of one of my cousins died. The family designed the most difficult funeral I ever attended. There was no room for humor at all. Not even a smile. Just sadness. I decided right then I want either Jeff Foxworthy or Bill Engvalls to be in charge of mine. No, that won't happen. But I want to "leave 'em laughing".

The perma-gloom seems to be permanent. We haven't seen the sun in weeks.

Oh, my goodness. The sky is a very strange color this morning. It's blue. It won't last, but I'll be grateful for seeing it at all.

TRUDY:
I am glad you got home safely..... (((((Big Hugs))))))


ELLEN:
We have a blue sky, too! Sooooo strange!


Time to change the calendar:

Go to:

https://horsefriends.forumotion.com/t152-february-2024#15530