I went out to the
cemetery today to visit my Mom and Dad's graves and to put some flowers on the
grave sites for Mother's Day which is next week. I got the flowers put on the
graves and watered the cut flowers, and arranged the silk ones and then went to
sit on the bench which I have taken to calling my meditation bench. It is under
a big pine tree and has been there ever since my Dad was buried there. It is
just a short distance from their graves.
As I was sitting there
contemplating many things I heard a little voice say, “Hi, Mister, are you here
visiting someone?” I turned and looked and standing just behind me, next to the
big pine tree were two children who looked about 8 or 9 years old. One was a
boy and the other a girl.
I answered “the voice”
because I did not know who was talking. I told them that indeed I was here to
visit my Mother, my Father and my Wife. They were all three here close
together.
The little girl (who I
later found out was the oldest) then looked right at me and said,
”you look sad, do you mind if we talk to you?” (what do you say to
a 9 year old who is that assertive?)
They were cute, polite
and well mannered so I could see no reason not to talk to them. However first I asked if their Mom and Dad were close by? They told me yes and pointed to a grave about
six graves away from where I had been sitting and said the two people there
were their Mom and Dad.
The girl asked is I was
sad because my Mom was here and I told her no and I visited them a lot. I told
them my Mom had been here for 23 years and my Dad had been here for 35 years I
told them my wife had only been here for 3 ½ years. The little girl replied
that she thought that was a long time and said she bet I visited them a lot.
The little boy just stood
on one foot and then the other and twirled around and looked up and down at his
feet like he would rather be someplace else. I asked him if he had a name and
told me sure. He said it was Gary and his sister was Mary. Mary gave him a
black look and told him she could tell me her name by herself and he did not
need to do it for her. (It was pretty easy to see who ruled the roost between
those two.)
I asked Gary if he ever
got a chance to talk and his answer to me was a “gem.” He said that Mary always
talked a lot so he hardly ever got a chance to say anything.
As we talked that became
quite obvious. Mary said to me, ”You know your Mom and Wife are not really in
that grave don’t you?” Before I could answer (perhaps it took me back a little
because I would never expect a 9 year old to ask me a question like that) she
told me that her Grandma, who they were visiting today, talked to her when she
was sick and told her she was soon going to live in Heaven, with Grandpa, who
had died several years ago.
I started to say that it
was nice for her Grandma and Grandpa could be together, but before I could get
a sentence started she said, ”Are you a Mormon? If you are you should know all
about that?”
Just as she said that a
young couple, who looked to be 30 or 35 walked up to the tree. As soon as Gary
saw them he yelled Mom, Mary is doing that Preco----- thing again. I can’t
remember the name, but she is doing in again!
The lady walked up to me
and apologized for her children bothering me. I told her it actually was nice
to have someone to talk to, even if they were precocious. At that point
Gary yelled out ---ya that is the word she is, that I never can remember.
The man stepped over and
said. “Hi, I am Mel and my wife is Gwen, and I hope our children have not been
to overbearing.” I assured him they had not, and they had been very polite and
had even given me a lesson on Heaven and the after life. At that point
Gwen said, Oh My, I hope they did not say anything offensive to you.”
I told her no, but Mary wanted me to know that
my Mother and Dad were not really here, in that grave, but this is just a place,
set aside, where we come to visit them. She also told me they probably also come
here when we are here, so they can be with us?
At that point Gwen said, “Oh
MY (which I found out was her favorite comment) I hope that was not offensive
to you. We have been told and of course we know she is more than a little
precocious.”
We visited for some time,
and it was strange , but I felt like we were just old friends. I found out that
the Harper’s lived in South Jordan, Utah and that their whole family were Utah
natives, born and lived in Utah their whole life.
I told them we were
pretty much the same, except for a few years we lived it Idaho. Of course Mary
and Gary had already told them that a lot of my relatives were buried right
next door.
I told them my name was Wally and I was glad
that Mary and Gary had stopped by to talk to me. Of course Mary spoke right up
and said, ”we will have to call you Mr. Wally because it is polite to call old
people Mr. & Mrs. Gwen put her hands on her head and said, “Oh Wally, I
guess Mary has just told you that you are old. I hope again that she has not
offended you.” I assured Gwen that Mary had not offended me, because I had been
called worse things than OLD. Gary had been dancing around and kicking the
grass again and he finally said, ”I just
wondered how old you really are Mr. Wally?” Gwen did her “Oh My” thing again
and I told Gary that as near as I knew I was older than dirt. He laughed and
thought that was really funny.
We visited a little more
and it was pleasant for me. It was a little different than what I was used to
doing when I was home alone and I enjoyed it.
Mel finally raised his
voice a little and said, “Come on kids we need to get going if we are going to
stop at KFC and get lunch on the way home.”
They all gathered by
their Grandma’s grave for a few minutes and then just as they turned to go to
the car Mary turned and looked at her Mother and said, “Mom, can Mr. Wally go
to lunch with us? You are always telling us we should be kind to the old and
those in need.”
Of course Gwen did her “OH
MY, OH MY” thing, a little louder than before. She looked at me and then at
Mary, and just as she was going to say something, whatever she had on her mind,
Gary said, “Ya Mom that is a great idea, we already know he is old because he
told us he was older than dirt.”
Well my afternoon ended
with the little family walking across the lawn toward their car. Mel was
shaking his finger at Mary and Gwen had her hand on her head, and I am sure she
was saying Oh My, Oh My. Gary was dragging his feet and kicking the toes of his
shoes in the grass, and I guessed he had got at least a one sentence reprimand.
And me! I just sat down
on the “Contemplation Bench” and snickered to myself. I had more fun that
afternoon than I had had for a long time.
And then another thought
passed my mind---next time I visit the cemetery, maybe I will not wear my sweat
shirt with the holes and stains on it, or my TEVA sandals, with the straps that
do not stay in place and just perhaps I will get a luncheon invitation, from
the Mom and Dad’s and not depend on the kids?
Written April 28 2016
(Of course this is a Blog—not a true story. However some of the
things have happened to put ideas in my head,)
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