Opa's Funeral

We drove down to St. George on Sunday afternoon for Opa's funeral services.  We were all just together at Oma and Opa's condo Sunday evening, looking at pictures and making preparations for the funeral and just hanging out.  Then on Monday we ran some errands in the morning, including getting our flat tire repaired - hooray for Costco in St. George.  In the afternoon Ben took Luke to the house for a nap while I brought the older kids to the funeral home for some private time with Opa's body, saying goodbye and talking about what it all meant.  That was the most special time for me and I really appreciated Uncle Reed suggesting that we do that before the viewing that night.

After that I knew the kids could use some time to run around and enjoy some fresh air, so I took them to a park near the house where we were staying in Washington.  We played basketball and ran around and played on the playground.  Then it was back to the house to get ready for the viewing.

Opa's viewing was held at a beautiful funeral home in St. George, and it was really nice to get to talk with extended family members I rarely see (as in, it's been at least 20 years) and meet friends of Oma's and Opa's.  The little cousins were great.  They cried together; they laughed together; they entertained themselves with charades when they got bored; they did their best to finish off all of the little candies that were placed throughout the funeral home.  The evening was really nice, even if it got long for the younger ones.

That night we went to dinner at one of Opa's favorite fine dining establishments, Chuck-A-Rama (like a big Sizzler).  There are two things I want to share about that dinner.  Back in the day, Opa and his brother Jerry used to vacation together with their families, and frequently squabbled over who would pay at restaurants.  Opa usually won.  So Monday night, Jerry's son decided that he would get the last word on that score and bought dinner for the whole group.  Then, when we were finishing our meal Uncle Jamie asked all of us to get some roast beef for a toast to Opa, the roast beef lover.  We obliged.  How often do you get to show your admiration for a beloved man by raising a fork of roast beef?  He would have laughed about that.  Maybe he actually did laugh about it.  (I only wonder, since Opa also loved Apple Beer, why didn't we just toast with that?  That would have been too normal for our family, I guess.)

My sister found us a four-bedroom Airbnb house for us to use while we were in town, and Monday night we had four families there.  The kids wanted to sleep in the living room with their second-cousin Abbie, but by the time I took this picture, Abbie had gone in search of a more comfortable place to sleep.

Opa's funeral was the following morning.  Since we were all dressed up and had to drive right by the St. George Temple, I convinced everyone to stop by for a quick picture.  I sure love this little family of mine.  And I'm glad that they put up with my little picture obsession.

The funeral was held at Oma and Opa's LDS Church building near their condo and it was very nice.  The speakers managed the perfect balance of lighthearted and serious, laughter and tears.  Cat accompanied all of the great-grandchildren and the younger grandchildren singing "I Am a Child of God," and I sang, "In This Very Room." I was happy to be able to participate in the program, and thankful that the kids were included as well.

We left from the church to attend the graveside service.  The local American Legion attended and gave a kind tribute to my grandfather, who'd served in the Army Air Corps during World War II.  They also did a 15-gun salute, and folded the flag that had been draped over the casket and gave it to Oma.  It was very touching.  Uncle Reed dedicated the grave, and all of us took turns saying a final farewell to Opa's early remains as we tossed a handful of peanuts underneath the casket.*  We took pictures (with Uncle Jamie photobombing, because it's never inappropriate to photobomb in this family) then headed back to the church for lunch, visiting, and the first round of goodbyes.

After lunch, we went back to the condo for some more hugs and goodbyes before changing clothes and packing everything up at the rental house.  We made a stop at the park near Opa's cemetery for the kids to run some energy off before being cooped up in the car for 3.5 hours driving home that night.  All of the other kids were at the park too, and it was nice that they finally had some time to just play and have fun together.  It was a great way to end our trip.

*Opa has always loved peanuts.  They were a requirement for him.  He often told the story of my younger sister visiting him when she was little, and when it was time to leave, she protested with, "But Opa!  We haven't had our peanuts!"