Don't have a photograph from this day. Christopher D was outside the church when our limo pulled up. I made sure to get his business card at the reception so will email him and hopefully he'll have some nice shots. Seemed to have a very good camera, so I'm optimistic.
Guy and I have been taking so many photos in recent years, that we usually remember to have the camera with us. Ever since Dadaee became ill and stopped taking pictures, I've felt like we have to step up and be the photographers. Over the past couple of years, Mom is also taking them, so our get-togethers have been well documented.
At any rate, none of us felt like a camera was appropriate during this day. Obviously we wouldn't have taken any at the church, as that would have been disrespectful. But we didn't even have the heart to do it at the reception or even that night, when our immediate family gathered past midnight. But I digress....
Timetable (all times are my best guess)
7:30am Wake up / Shower/ Dress
9:00am Leave for limousine pickup
9:40am Leave for the church
Our limousine driver was so slow - I didn't think it was possible to take that long to get there. By the time we did, pretty much everyone was there and the bell was ringing.
10:00 am Casket enters the building
10:05 am We follow with everyone looking on
10:07 am Service starts
10:27 am Eulogies by Mom and Uncle Johnny - absolutely beautiful
10:37 am Service ends - Pall bearers carry out casket (Hard to believe Dadaee's body is in there) We follow
10:40am - ? Stand outside church steps - People bombard us - it's like "This is Your Life"
I know that we're missing at least 2/3s of the people who attended. No less than 6 people thought I had delivered the eulogy. I simply smiled and said "Thank you". Others started talking to me, and midway through the conversation, realized that I wasn't Mom. My favorite, as I've repeated multiple times, was the woman who said, "Your eulogy was so beautiful, and your son is so handsome." Gee, I didn't realize I looked 60!
11:10am - Back in limousine and drive to cemetary - on the way discuss Dad's appearance both physically and his attendance at the funeral. My grandmother spoke to him and didn't recognize him. That was pretty funny.
11:30am - ?? Cemetary service. I was amazed how many people attended the internment. There were at least 50 people there. At this point I'll mention that the day was beautifully clear, with high, puffy clouds all around. It was also very windy (the high was in the 50s). The saddest part was when my grandmother wanted the casket lowered down into the hole before we left. At that point, most outside our immediate family had left for the reception. We each pulled a carnation off of Dadaee's casket before it was lowered and dropped it in. The most poignant part was as the pallbearers were all removing their boutinneires and placing them on the casket, the "honorary" pallbearers in attendance lined up behind them and did the same thing (I don't know where they got the flowers).
time unknown - Reception Crazy/intense Not as many people as there were at the funeral, but still a lot. All our extended family members from both sides of the family. Beautiful slideshow playing, and several enlarged, framed photographs. We didn't leave there until after 3pm.
Later that night - At Mimi's house for dinner with our extended immediate family (3 additional people) plus an old family friend who had flown down from Portland. At this point, it's important to note that my grandparents made their own family. In addition to their family members they had a tight group of friends. Their children knew each other, and the grandchildren saw each other at Christmas and on other visits (as they lived out of town). If my grandfather had died sooner (thank God he didn't), there would have been so many more people mourning his loss. Two of his close friends predeceased him by less than 3 months.
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