Yesterday--Saturday

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I spent a large part of the day yesterday helping serve a meal at a funeral. It was a long time community member, and I am friends with his daughter. They had arranged to use a large building--that used to be a school gymnasium when Florence had schools. It did not work out. The planners had gone over Thursday night, and they had cleaned up because there were a few flies. They swept it. Turned on the heat so the big building would be comfortable, and by Saturday there was enough flies to blacken the windows completely. There was already two hundred chairs or more set up, but they moved the plans for the funeral to the church he had attended. It was a bit more "cozy" but that is okay. Everyone was seated. Everyone was fed. Everyone got to visit with the large family. Mr. Miller was 99 or 100, I am not sure. He had six siblings, some of whom are still living. He also had four kids of his own. There was even a great great grandchild present.He had passed away at home a week ago. He was not alone, but had family and at least one community member who had sat with him. No hospitals for him. As a young person he had had rheumatic fever and was not expected to recover. . . ha ha, Dale Miller fooled them. Clear up into his 90's he walked around town gathering up aluminum cans which he crushed and donated the funds to his church and to the ambulance service, sending the tabs to Ronald McDonald house. A local trucking company would haul the crushed cans for free. Over one million cans in his lifetime. I was pretty tired from being on my feet, standing still for most of five hours. Moving around is less tiring than standing in one spot. I am glad I went.