Uncle Verl's Funeral

Uncle Verl's funeral was today. It was a really good service. They did some things I've never seen happen before. They had all 8 kids speak and give memories of their dad. Each kid had differing memories depending on their birth order. The older kids remembered having to fetch their own willows for spankings. The younger kids didn't have to do that. Some remembered gathering wood, some remembered going on the milk truck. They all remembered laughing a lot and practical jokes. Dennis (#7) insisted that he was the favorite and only he knew where the "Secret Will" was hidden-and he gets EVERYTHING. Then he reminded us that 100% of "not much" is still "not much." As Dennis spoke of his feelings for his dad and his regrets for being so rotten, he started tearing up. The Bishop grabbed a tissue from in front of Dennis on the podium and handed it to him. Dennis gave a confused look at the tissue, took it, then took his folded hanky out of his suitcoat chest pocket and showed it to the Bishop. Then he reached into his right pants pocket and removed an identically folded hanky and added it to the first one. Then he reached into his left pants pocket and took out a third, identically folded hanky and added it to the first two. He showed them to the Bishop... then explained they were for his wife. He had everyone in stitches almost the whole time. Then Alan explained that he thought he was an "oops" until he realized that Dennis was such a devil that his parents just wanted one more chance to get it right.
A lot of them spoke of Uncle Verl's fondness of Mt. Trumball and the Arizona Strip. Since they couldn't take him there to be buried, they brought Mt. Trumball here to him. This bucket was full of dirt from Mt. T. and each of the family members got to put a shovelful of dirt under his casket. Then they had a bucketful to put on top of the casket. Very ingenious, I thought.
Aunt Ada is putting her dirt under Verl's casket. My double first cousin- once removed, Jerry, is standing in the way. (or would that be doubley once removed- or could it be once removed twice over?)

My mom's arm, and my grandma. In case you aren't family, and somehow are here by accident. My g-ma, Myrtle, is sisters with Ada. Verl is brothers with Dee (my g-pa). Dee married Myrtle and Verl married Ada. Whah laah... Double second cousins with everyone at the funeral!

What was really weird, was seeing all these other 2nd cousins with the same eyes and faces as a lot of my 1st cousins. It was like we were related somehow.

Uncle Eddie adding his dirt.

I remember's: Uncle Verl as the announcer at the races every year at the Van Leuven Reunion saying, "On your mark, get set, wait a minute...I didn't say go..."; his PA system he'd always bring up; him announcing the talent show Sat. evening at the reunion; jokes-lots of jokes and laughter; getting a ride to a reunion with him one year; him umpiring the women's and men's softball games at the reunion; him playing horseshoes; his little 90cc motorcycle he'd ride everywhere and wave as he went by; him at all the sporting events; following my 10-yr-old boyfriend,Carl, on his newspaper route delivering to Uncle Verl's house; the Hiland Dairy milk truck all over town; the swing he built in his yard with four swings that would go around in circles (similar to the Yo-Yo at carnivals) that was my favorite memory; he's the one that gave me directions to the "swing" hanging on a tree on Kaibab, We had been searching for it for 3 summers till I asked him where it was,"Go down, down, down till you can't go down anymore, there's a clearing, turn right there. Go down till you come to where the old mill used to be (????? it's not there anymore) and it's on the hill next to that." (Yes, we found it with THOSE directions.)

He was the last of his siblings to die, and his kids are sure there's a party goin' on right now...in Heaven.