I have a memory in my head…it goes way, way back in time. Maybe I was five; it seems you can’t go back much further than that in your childhood memory bank unless you confuse actual happenings with the memories of others. But there I was, with my grandmother, in a funeral parlor, or funeral home as they are called in southern Indiana.
What I do not recall is WHY we were there. I do not remember us “visiting someone”, if you know what I mean. We were in a big room where there were lots of caskets, coffins, sarcophaguses, or after placed in the ground, “final resting place”.
I specifically remember there being child-size samples. Obviously this vivid, and not so happy, memory has remained with me for more than 45 years.
Never letting go of my grandmother’s hand, I think I can say I was traumatized.
Fast forward some 30 years and there I was again, back in the Parlor. Only this time it was for an even more somber occasion. My great aunt had passed away and my sister and I had been asked to sing a hymn for the funeral service. This was not anything we had not done before; we were accustomed to singing together. We had sang as a trio in our church growing up with our father as the tenor, strumming his acoustic for all it was worth, my sister leading and me bringing up the alto. “Buddy and the Girls” sang some old Rambo songs, newer Lanny Wolfe selections (now remember this was the 70’s) and probably some Happy Goodman’s thrown in for good measure. (Indulge me here with this blast from the past…you can barely make it out but this is the three of us singing back in the day…)
(And this one, a close-up of the Brady Bunch, I mean the Miller family, circa 1976…classics…dyin’ over those leisure suits!)
But this time, for some reason, “Dad” wasn’t singing with us; we were on our own and it should have been easy street.
Not so. Oh, not so.
As was the setting in this particular home-for-the-dearly-departed, the singers and organist were in a “secret room” off to the side; we could not be seen, only heard.
That is good and it is also bad.
We could not really see what was going on, except for some “slats” in the wall that gave us a slight view of the minister.
It was finally our time to begin “Near the Cross” and the organist starts the introduction. My sister, Rhea, made Fanny Crosby proud in that moment as she softly crooned,
Jesus, keep me near the cross,There a precious fountain
Free to all, a healing stream
Flows from Calv’ry’s mountain.
I humbly add my alto to her soprano when we reach the chorus and family harmony never sounded so good as we blended together to sing,
In the cross! In the cross! Be my glory ever…Here is where things go horribly wrong.
We are gathered around one microphone, reminiscent of radio recordings, and almost singing face-to-face. Suddenly, without warning, Rhea begins to giggle.
I look at her in horror when we hit the line, “Till my raptured soul shall find…” and she bursts out laughing and turns away from me and the microphone!
That leaves this alto all alone, in shock and disbelief, thinking she must have hiccups, about to be sick, or something else I cannot imagine. I cannot begin to believe she is literally laughing out loud.
But yes, she is, leaning against the wall in this little cubbyhole of a room, laughing. The organist glances at us both, back and forth, horrified and stunned.
True to our Miller training, I immediately switch parts and begin the lead as I enter “…rest beyond the river”.
I sing the next verse all by myself, finish the last chorus, all by myself, and finally, after what seemed an eternity, it was over.
I grabbed my sister’s hand; pushed her out the door, and down the hallway to the ladies room for my “What were you thinking?” tirade.
In between laughs she is mumbling, “I’m sorry”.
I am still in shock. Surely everyone noticed this was not planned. We will be the talk of the funeral for years to come. Poor Addie Cazee will be immortalized, not for the beautiful service, the flowers or the crowd that came to pay their respects.
“Remember those sisters that sang that song at Addie’s funeral?” “Yes, have you ever seen anyone laugh at a funeral?” “Not when they were singing the song right before the eulogy!”No, this one will go down in history for the duet that sang a hymn (they won’t even remember WHICH hymn) and LOL’d all the way to the end.
I believe I told my sister I was retiring from “funeral parlor singing” that very day. I actually kept my word for quite a while until our grandmother passed away about 13 years ago…Buddy and the Girls were asked to perform a selection. This time it was out in the open, no little room to hide our faces. There we stood once again, side by side, that family harmony blending like magic.
And my spiked heel on her foot just daring her to even think of smiling…
Sharing with #TellHisStory, A Little R & R, Wise Woman Builds, Homemaking Party, Thankful Thursday, Time Travel Thursday, Thriving Thursday, Thrive at Home, Essential Things, Friendship Friday, Faith Filled Friday, Fellowship Fridays
That is an awesome story!! Made me smile! I agree, especially if we are ready to meet God a funeral should be a time of rejoicing! We have finally reached what we live for our entire lives. Thank you so much for sharing. ♥
I had to be sure to read the post because I remember being APPALLED when, at the first funeral I ever attended (that of my great-grandmother who passed at 103 years old), my grand aunts sat near the casket (at the cemetery service) cackling like a bunch of old hens. Now it is one of my fondest memories. They could do no more for their mother – and I wish I could have heard the stories that were making their hearts merry during their time of sadness!
A little brother with the giggles, as you can see from the picture I had two of those! But usually they were fighting with each other instead of giggling, lol. I am sure I could tell stories on myself too, and have! I just happened to remember this lately and couldn’t help but share. Thank you for taking the time to comment!!
I believe that they called that hairdo a “Gibson”, if I remember right, it was pretty popular in the 60’s and 70’s, lol. My mother had several different “do’s” through the years, some of them she is mortified by and some of them were very nice on her. It is funny to look back and wonder, “What were we thinking?!” Gotta love that time period! Thank you for stopping by, Martha!
Funny you should ask, Stephanie, neither one of us remember why she started laughing. I think it was just the whole concept of being behind closed doors, it was kind of odd and our first time to do it like that…lol, it was our last too! Thank you for the chuckle. Blessings!
Oh wow! I would have ended up with the giggles too! i’m a contagious laugher! Did you ever find out why she got the giggles? 😉
nannette, hi, i’m your neighbor at FF. enjoyed your story:) i know i’ve been here b/f. can’t forget the story of your name…very memorable. in the photo of your family, your mom’s hairdo is the one that i found most interesting…as i do in looking back over our family photos. it’s the mom hairdos that i look at and go, “how did i think that was attractive?” but it was at the time! 🙂
That cracked me up!! My little brother’s reaction to being nervous is to giggle–that’s led him to giggling in plenty of inappropriate times, including when he was getting scolded by my parents!
Well, thank you, friend! It is good to laugh, I am glad for a sister who can find humor in herself! Blessings to you.
Agree, Lisa, that is what is funny about it. I’ve made some real boo boo’s in church myself! I guess I should share them to even things out 🙂 Blessings!
Seriously! I would probably have died if they could see us, and maybe it would not have happened. It was hard to be serious back there, it felt like you were not even at the funeral, that probably led to the comics! Thank you for stopping by!!
Definitely, Dixie. She is a trooper though under most normal circumstances, ha. Thanks so much for taking the time to comment! ♥
Well….she gave her permission, she’s a good sport, but I hope all of this attention doesn’t embarrass her. She’s got a great heart and is normally more serious. That’s what makes it so funny. I guess I should tell one on myself the next time to be fair! Thanks, Floyd.
Weren’t those leisure suits the best?! Oh my, Sharon, I love your story about you and your brother. I could picture it! So funny, I agree the Lord might have chuckled too. We know He has a sense of humor, have you seen me??? lol.
Blessings to you dear friend! ♥
Oh goodness – I am cracking up here! Too, too funny! By the way, you guys were rocking the best (?) of the 70’s in your family photo!
I can remember one time when my brother and I got our signals mixed up with our parents, and we ended up sitting by ourselves in church. Big mistake. My brother was always a doodler and a cartoonist. So he starts drawing something on the offering envelope. After a few minutes, he pokes my shoulder and shows me the envelope. On it is a man holding a sign saying, “Are you a man or a mouse?” Then my brother lifted the flap and there was the same man’s body, now topped by a giant mouse head! The sign now read, “C’mon. Squeak up!”
We got the giggles so bad. Tears, runny noses – maybe even a few snorts. We were frowned upon by the surrounding worshipers, but I have a feeling that the Lord might have shared a chuckle with us!
Great story – thanks for sharing!
GOD BLESS!
That’s too funny! What great memories of your family. I can’t imagine there’s too many get togethers that you don’t bring this one up to your sister! Now it’s your turn to laugh!
Unbelievable! Could happen to any of us, I’m sure. You were brave to carry on!
LOL Sisters! You are lucky you guys were behind a wall! Can you imagine if you had to face all those people…watching your sister laugh. Oh my! lol
Sometimes it’s in those sacred spaces that we get the urge to giggle and can’t stifle it. 🙂 Been there, done that. But maybe not to this extent in a public forum. ha. Funny story.
I love this story! I could read this over and over again many times. Thanks so much for the smiles and laughter!
Thanks for giving me a giggle! I can just imagine how you were feeling! Surprised you didn’t get the giggles with Rhea.
Love and miss you!
Love the story – what a memory! And yet, smiles and laughter do have a place even at a funeral. My mom admonished us not to make her funeral too somber – she wanted us to be joyous about her entry into the Church Triumphant. Not to say we partied, but we did share memories, smiles and laughs. Glad to join up next to you at Tell HIs Story