Aunt Mic's Funeral-Some Tears and Some Laughter!

I got the sad news this past Thursday that my Aunt Mic had passed away.
She was getting old and had health problems so it was expected that she would not live much longer.
I haven't seen her as much in recent years as I used to. She moved farther from us and closer to her daughter. But she still meant a great deal to me.
She had spoken to her great nephew on HER side of the family (she was my aunt my marriage) and had asked him to speak at her funeral. She had a few requests that she wanted honored.
One was that she didn't want it to be sad, with no one crying (but we all were anyway). She wanted people who felt like it to say a few words about her. I didn't have the courage to do so...I probably would have except that I didn't want to embarrass my parents!
What I remember the most about my aunt Mic is that she always really seemed to like me. Genuinely. I don't really have an example of WHY I felt that way, but she seemed to enjoy it when I came around and I felt LOVED by her.
One time, when I was no more than 4, I was alone with her at her house...my mother must have had something to do for it was rare that I was left anywhere! But my Aunt Mic decided that we would make a chocolate cake. She stood me on a chair and started me out with the electric mixer mixing up the batter. She had to leave the kitchen for a moment but gave me a very stern warning..."DON'T LIFT THE MIXER OUT OF THE MIXING BOWL OR THE CHOCOLATE BATTER WILL SPLATTER EVERYWHERE!!"

Don't ever tell a preschooler that....

She came back a minute or so later. "You lifted the mixer, didn't you???"

I wasn't in too much trouble, but I still remember that even after all these years.

A few years or so went by and evidently she had forgiven me because Christmas presents continued to come. When I was about 12 she bought my 18 year old sister and I matching pajamas. They came with funny matching "footie" slippers.

"I told the sales clerk that there is no way those slippers would fit their feet!" I heard her tell my mom. "They're so BIG! But that's the way they're supposed to be, I was told!" she exclaimed.

Well, Aunt Mic, I never told YOU, but those slippers fit me just fine!! They probably were too big for my "big" sister, but my feet were just the right size, unfortunately!!

In accordance to her wishes, her great nephew told her that he would try to make her funeral a "happy" occasion. But he knew that there was only one way that he could do so. He told her that there was only one way that "death" could be considered something to rejoice about and that would be the death of a saint. He had to know if she had accepted Jesus as her Savior.

My aunt was not a "church going" lady. I'm sure she went sometimes but MY immediate family was ALWAYS at church...or so I'm sure it seemed to be to the rest of our family. But you know, or I hope you know, that "going to church" doesn't save you. It is what you have done with our Savior's gift of his death on the cross that matters. Tears streamed down my face as this young man explained that to the many many people gathered there. Tears of JOY were cried when he told us that she assured him that she did, indeed, know our Savior! I've wondered that since I was told of her death. It was something that I was afraid to think about. I'd talked to her before about the Lord but I didn't want to be "preachy" and to be thought of as "offensive." What a shame if she didn't know the Lord and none of us had risked telling her about Him.
My dad was sometimes like a little bulldog when it came to his faith. He seems timid at times but he did talk to his family about Salvation. I know that he spoke to his loved ones about this great Gift and that simply believing and accepting Jesus' payment for our sins was enough!

At her funeral we sang some songs and listened to some pre-recorded ones. I think one song was entitled "When I get Where I'm Going." Of course, I've heard it before but in this instance, it meant even more since I was thinking about my Aunt Mic.

Finally, after the words were all said, the prayers were prayed and the last songs were sung, she had one last request that the young man wanted to fulfil.

He said, "Now don't laugh, but this last song isn't a song that is usually played at funerals but Aunt Mic requested it!"

In just a few seconds, we heard the happy voices of children singing, "It's a Small World After All..." We couldn't help but laugh. It was just perfect, kind of "comic relief!"

I wonder if she knew that we WOULD all laugh? It was really cute and helped us how we were feeling after losing our loved one.
Thank you, Aunt Mic, for your love. Thank you for the opportunity for the rest of our family to hear about your faith and to possibly accept it as their own.

Oh...and thank you for forgiving me for the chocolate cake batter splattered all over your kitchen! You were right, it DOES make a MESS!