The Sprinkling

Uncle Art died while preparing a birthday dinner for his sister Mary. It would seem a good way to go....doing something nice for your sister. However, it was difficult for Aunt Mary as she arrived at the house to enjoy  a meal and found her brother, on the floor, no longer with us.
This situation helped me decide that I should help her get through this.. I cleaned his apartment, packed up his belongings and whatever else she asked of me. The whatever else was the tough part. Not that the cleaning was pleasant but when she asked for help disposing of his ashes.......
Aunt Mary was very disturbed for many reasons..she was still in mourning for my Dad  (her brother), very upset at finding the body, against cremation, but he had requested it legally so she had to go ahead with it.  When Mary was finished with all the legalities, we still had the problem of what to do with the ashes.  Mary did not want to keep them( I suggested she save them & bury them with her). The look on her face was one of shock that I would suggest such a thing. Then I suggested sprinkling them on the water since Uncle Art had been a Merchant Marine for many years. ( I remember his tales of being a cook on a ship and especially the story about cockroaches running around the rim of the soup pot).  Mary did not like that suggestion. She seemed to need the security of knowing where the ashes were located and still comply with Uncle Art's wishes.
Finally I suggested my brothers, my mothers, or our property and ours was chosen.
I pointed out the areas that were left in the natural state, not bothered by digging ,weeding, the bulldozer etc.  I drove to her home, picked up Art's ashes, drove to Art's Apartment to pick up the ashes of Aunt Frances ( which had been on the window sill for five years) stopped by Mom's to pick her up and on to MacKenzie's Acres.
Earlier that day I had been laughing nervously at the situation, then had to stop and tell myself how much this meant to Aunt Mary. I decided to buy a few plants to color the area that she had chosen.

Mother was a real trouper, stomping through the area to be the head sprinkler. The ashes were like gravel as the bone does not burn but is semi-pulverized.
Mary spoke to each of them and said her goodbyes, we said the Lord's Prayer together and then I sang the beginning of " In Paradisum"  " May the angels lead you into paradise, may the martyrs come to welcome you, and bring you to the holy city, the new and eternal Jerusalem."
It was a beautiful day, the sun was shining on the ferns and after all my giddiness, I thought to myself, what a peaceful way to go. I felt very good inside and for a moment wished that Dad was also in our woods.

It is difficult to know what Uncle Art and Dad thought of the event...knowing those two they probably had a good belly laugh and then shed a few tears.

A few months later I drove Aunt Mary home after a family dinner...she started to open the door and then said,  "Martha, how are Aunt Frances and Uncle art doing?"      I was a little startled by the question but answered, " Just fine, Aunt Mary, just fine."