“While the nearer waters roll, while the tempest still is high”*

by chuckofish

On Friday I went to my BFF Carla’s mother’s funeral. It was a very watered down Catholic/Episcopal service loosely officiated by Carla’s cousin (a Catholic priest) and her son Michael (an Episcopal priest) with Eucharist (wafer and white wine). No pomp. No circumstance. Her mother Rosemary would have liked it that way.

My favorite memory of Rosemary is the time we went to hear her grandson preach and after the service we talked about how all of us flyover friends and relatives should go to his ordination in NYC. We laughed picturing us all pulling up in front of the Cathedral of St. John the Divine like the Beverly Hillbillies in an overloaded pickup truck. I told Michael that story before the funeral and he showed me the picture of just that–Rosemary in front of the cathedral with the entire family (sans pickup.) She was very proud of all her grandchildren.

Into paradise may the angels lead thee, Rosemary, and at thy coming may the martyrs receive thee, and bring thee into the holy city Jerusalem. (BCP, Burial of the Dead)

The rest of my weekend was pretty quiet. The boy and the twins were back at church with us and then came over for brunch and some driveway sittin’.

The wee bud took the Raptor out for a spin…

…and a good time was had by all.

I watched Santa Fe Trail (1940) starring Errol Flynn as Jeb Stuart and Ronald Regan as George Custer.

Although it bears no connection to historical reality, it nevertheless holds up very well as a movie. Directed by Michael Curtiz and with the Warner Brothers A Team of supporting actors, it tells a good yarn, and as the boy said, Raymond Massey was born to play John Brown.

And I talked to these sweet ladies…

…who were doing some driveway sittin’ of their own.

*Charles Wesley, 1740