But EVEN THOUGH I missed one day for this year's resolution I will still keep at it.
day 4
Today was my younger brother, Anthony's 18th birthday. Also it was my grandfather's funeral. He was a retired Air Force Lieutenant Colonel, so it was a military service. Yesterday was the viewing which was nice, but strange. I couldn't look at him. I hadn't seen him really since 2007 at my older brother, William's wedding.
Today 3 limousines picked us up from my aunt's house and took us to Arlington National Cemetary. Military funerals are quite surreal... It was very quiet and eerie. Very patriotic and it made me feel very proud of my grandfather.
There was a funeral service in the chapel, where a military chaplain led the service. My grandfather was moved inside for the service and then very quietly and precisely he was carried back outside by the honor guard and put onto the limbers and caissons pulled by horses. From there, the honor guard led the horse-drawn carriage to the grave site.
I chose to walk with my father, aunt, uncles and brothers as opposed to riding in the limos from the chapel to the grave site.. I figured, I could bare a mile & a half walk in the biting cold in heels to honor my grandfather. I also wanted to capture some pictures of the service, the horse drawn carriage carrying my grandfather's casket, and the honor guard.
Once we reached the grave site, there were a few words said by the military chaplain, followed by the three volley salute by some service members. Then was TAPS by the lone bugler while they gave the final salute. It was all very intense and surreal.
The honor guard folded the flag that draped my grandfather's coffin so tightly and precisely and then the chaplain presented it to my father and thanked him for my grandfather's service. That pretty much concluded the service and we all headed back to the limos.
I kept thinking to myself how much this was like a movie. And then all I could think of was that saying that goes "art imitates life imitates art."
I did capture some pictures by the way. I hope that they all turned out well. I will find out later this week when I take my film to get developed..
Even though I was never really close with him, he was always very good to me. Annual Christmas & birthday gifts. And then when he got older, my parents told him to NOT GO OUT christmas shopping anymore... he didn't listen for a while, but I take it he took the hint as last year as I simply got checks from both him & my great-grandmother.
He also sent me a check as a congratulatory gift for my graduating from film school. I wrote him a thank you note in February which I found in late October. I had never sent it. So I brought it with me, and put it in his pocket. It's never too late right ? My aunt laughed when she saw I had a return address on it. And I replied "I'd shit my pants if I saw that in my mailbox" as if it had been "returned to sender."
But my grandfather has forever to read it. He is in the sky again, where he belonged. Flying high.
z
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