Last week we buried Johanna.

With all the Oliver friends I’ve lost such as Beverly Tasker, Tony Kamin, Holger Mundel, and Bob Campbell, I have not had the experience of going to the graveside service.

Of course now that I’m older, I may be looking at this ritual differently than I would perhaps have done during my younger years. Nonetheless, I found closure in the overall experience. Though the graveside service was not a lengthy procedure, it was very endearing. After the priest spoke and sprinkled holy water on the casket, he asked us all to take a flower from the casket spray which we did. When the casket was lowered to the level of the ground he then asked us to place our flower on the casket which we also did. For me this action was like a final send off for the body of Johanna. At that point the service ended and we all went back to the church for a meal and fellowship.

Upon reflection, everything went well and all was done with the greatest of respect both for the living as well as the dead. I know where Johanna’s body lies and for me that is great comfort. This is something I’ve not had the experience of before, but then again, it may be because I’m older and I look at life and death differently now.

In the near future, I will be returning to Oliver for some R&R, as well as doing some research for more stories. I thought maybe I would run out of material to write about but many of you, my readers, have helped me out with ideas. I appreciate your input immensely.