My family and I were riding in the limo. Everyone was quiet and calm as we rode along. We pulled up to New Life of All Souls Baptist Church. It’s the church my family usually attends every Sunday, but it wasn’t Sunday. I didn’t understand why we were there.
I asked my mother “Where are we going?”
“We are going to Granddad’s funeral,” she responded.
Since I was young I didn’t know what a funeral was and just said OK and enjoyed riding in the limo.
We pulled up to the church and the staff let the family go in to view his body. I didn’t know what he was doing in the blue box. So I just looked at him. I stared at him for a very long time.
“What is he doing?” I asked. My mother didn’t reply.
We walked to our seats and sat down. There was a lot of crying and the pastor stood up to say prayers. He kept talking about my grandfather and so did several other people. When they were done talking a man closed the box my grandfather was in. People began to burst out in tears. I suddenly heard people crying in their seats all over the church. I was scared because everyone was screaming and I didn’t know what was happening.
Six men picked up the blue box with my grandfather in it and carried it out the church. Everyone then went to the cemetery and my grandfather’s grave. Everybody was emotional and crying. We gathered around the grave under a green tent and the man from the church said a prayer and touched my grandfather’s blue box. As they lowered the box, I could see my mother drowning with tears.
Two years later, I was at my Uncle’s funeral. Now was eight years old. During this funeral service, I was in the sanctuary reflecting on my Grandfather’s funeral how he was in that mysterious box. I didn’t know it was called a casket. I began to miss him terribly. They closed my uncle’s casket and once again people began screaming and crying. This time I wasn’t scared. When my uncle’s casket was being taken out of the church, it all of sudden hit me. I now truly knew what a funeral was. I realized my Grandfather was dead.