I Am the Alpha and the Omega
Sunday, October 26th, 2008The funeral home was packed because “Uncle Jimmy” was a man people counted on in life. He was a well-respected leader in the community and the community gathered in droves when he died.
Uncle Jimmy was a true salesman. He entered the diner and had to go around to nearly every table before he could sit down. He seemed to know everyone and often had a hearty “Hello” to offer them all as if they were his best friends. People loved him for his friendliness. He sold cars down at the Buick house thus explaining why LeSabres and Regals dominated the streets in town.
Birdie and Earl had known him when he was a young man and had helped him get started. It was widely known that Birdie respected some men more than others. Uncle Jimmy earned his respect because he was equally respectful of both men and women. Most men are obvious in the way they insult women by being sugary sweet to them without offering them the same sense of respect they offer freely to men.
Birdie was dressed for respect. She wore an elegant black dress appropriate for the level of respect she felt for “James” as she called him. Even the faux pearls and matching earrings were in sync because they picked up the silver-blue highlights of her hair. As she passed by Uncle Jimmy’s open casket, the highlights of her hair glistened in the blue and pink lights that shined down on him like a divine light.
“James deserves a good send-off,” she whispered to me as she passed by on her way to her seat in the back. While some might have thought she was encouraging me to do a good job, I understood her to mean she looked like a million bucks in his honor.
The somber-serious funeral director escorted the family to their seats as the time to begin the funeral neared. The entrance of the family was like the maestro stepping up on the podium. It was the theater of small-town drama at its best.
What was obvious was that Uncle Jimmy was not going to be around to see the birth of his first great-grandson. Jimmy’s oldest granddaughter was so pregnant with child she waddled gingerly down the aisle and carefully lowered herself down to the folding chair that groaned under her bulging weight. When the gravity of her body seemed to relax and settle, so did the crowd. She was full with child and the whole town seemed to hold its breath when she made her way into the room.
This granddaughter was the one who lit up Uncle Jimmy’s world. The first couple of grandkids had been boys and while grandsons were nothing to sneer at, when Jennifer was born, she became his favorite. Uncle Jimmy loved her and she loved him back.
Jennifer grew up and got married. Uncle Jimmy bought them a car for their wedding and off they went in it when the rice was thrown at their big send-off. What they didn’t know as they drove out of town was that Uncle Jimmy’s doctor had given him a medical report that included cancer.
So while he was laughing and making a fuss over his granddaughter’s wedding, he was holding back a piece of sadness that only he and his wife knew.
Months later, he was unable to get to the car dealership. He was too tired, he said, and the loss of weight had made him gnarly and weak. Unlike some who suffered the same, Uncle Jimmy never lost his hope or his quick wit. He may have been hurting but he never let on that he felt bad. He always had a good word to share with the many people who stopped by to see him.
Jennifer came by after the honeymoon. The day she told him she was pregnant, he mustered up the energy to take her down to the diner for a celebration. They sat in the booth in the back so they could have a little privacy. Uncle Jimmy was never happier, he told her. It was then he broke the news that he was sick unto death.
The closer she got to the due date, the weaker he got. They were headed in different directions it seemed. She grew larger and he withered away.
Uncle Jimmy died on a Friday and Thelma, his wife, planned his funeral for the following Monday. Jennifer’s doctor had meanwhile determined she should deliver by Caesarian and they set the date for Tuesday. Uncle Jimmy’s big departure was on one day and Little Jimmy’s arrival was the next day. Jennifer had no question about what the baby’s name would be.
Life in a small town is a sampler for the whole range of emotions one can feel. There’s no place to hide and no secrets kept for too long. As I stood to “say words” over Uncle Jimmy’s life, I knew there were two strong tugs on both ends of the spectrum of life.
I read the words as if they were penned just for this occasion. “I am the Alpha and the Omega…”
