THROUGH THE EYES OF A CHILD

He lived in the country and knew about death. His daddy had run over one of the kittens and they had buried it under a fig tree. He had even watched his daddy kill a chicken and then his mom cooked it for supper.

Today four year old Jack was all dressed up in a white shirt, his itchy church pants and his hair was still wet from his mom combing it to one side. He looked in the mirror and hardly recognized himself. He was going to the funeral of his great grandmaw, Granny Sue. His mom told him that they would wear their dress up clothes and meet with all his cousins, aunts, and uncles to tell Granny goodbye. They were going to be sad, even the grownups might cry. Jack was nervous about this crying stuff. He didn't even know grownups could cry.

Mom and Dad parked the car in front of a big white building with wide brick steps. Jack could see some of his cousins standing by the front door. They looked different too, all dressed up. And none of them looked like they were having any fun. Why weren't they playing chase and yelling at each other?

Jack's mom stood by the car and as soon as his feet touched the ground, she started tucking his shirt into his pants. She licked a tissue and wiped a spot off his face. "Now, Jack, this isn't the time for your foolishness. This is a funeral. Be a very good boy and we'll have something to eat afterwards. Remember Paw Paw Bill is going to be very, very sad and we are here to support him. You give him a big hug, he'll like that," instructed his mom.

Jack knew he better mind his mom. She didn't forget when you misbehaved.

Jack was glad to see his Nanna and PawPaw Randy, his other grandparents, sitting just inside the door of the funeral home. They were all dressed up and not smiling, until they saw Jack. He forgot and ran over to them, "Granny Sue died! We're going to put her in a hole in the ground! Daddy said they dug the hole with a backhoe. I am going to have a backhoe when I grow up."

"Shhhh, Jack, we know, you need to sit here with us, and be very quiet," said PawPaw Randy.

Nanna stood up and asked, "Jack, would you like to see Granny Sue and tell her goodbye? See up front, that's the coffin that holds Granny's body. See all the pretty flowers, people sent those to show how much they loved her."

Jack just shook his head, "What do I say to her, can she hear me?"

Jack, Nanna, and PawPaw walked down the aisle and stopped in front of the coffin. PawPaw picked him up and stepped a little closer. Jack leaned over and even Granny Sue looked different. He had never seen her so still, her hair was combed flat, without all the frizzy stuff around the edges of her face. Her eyes were closed and she looked like she was just sleeping. Jack decided it wasn't a good idea to talk to Granny Sue.

When they were back in their seats, Jack whispered, "Nanna, why did they cut Granny's legs off?"

"What? What do you mean? They didn't cut her legs off!" Nanna said with a worried look on her face.

"Yes, they did too. She doesn't have any legs in that box."

"Oh, Sugar, she has legs. See how the box is only half open. They just opened one part so you could see her face."

Jack was sure relieved, 'cause he thought just dying was bad enough.