I was shocked to find that my almost ten year old suit still fit. Well mostly fit. I think my neck got fatter. The pants fit fine though the shirt and jacket seemed a little tight around the middle. They must have shrunk. Next came the tie. The first attempt to tie it failed rather miserably. The small end of the tie hung all the way to my belt. After the second attempt, I had everything about the right length. Unfortunately, the tag that you slide the thin end of the tie into had ripped off at one end. I did the only thing I could think of in the short time I had. I grabbed a piece of scotch tape and hoped it would hold.
Even though things should have seemed normal, Jobu sensed something different about this morning. He meowed softly at me a few times as if to check if I was ok. With a “bye bye Jobu, be a good Jobu,” I left and started the long morning drive.
It took me a little under 21/2 hours to complete the drive south. I knew where I was going. I had been there a few times before. The small country town doesn’t have much but it does have the local funeral home. I was there to bury my uncle.
It was a traditional funeral with an open casket and then we went out to the graveside. During the whole service, I looked at him lying there and kept thinking that he was going to sit up any moment and say he got us all and it was a joke. I was a pallbearer so after the service, I waited around to put the casket in the hearse. I watched as they slowly closed the lid and locked it. That’s when I realized he wasn’t going to sit up.
