My father's memorial

My dad was a World War II veteran, a major who served in Italy and North Africa. His heart's desire was to be interred at Arlington Memorial Cemetery. He must have been beaming from the heavens today!

The elements of the ceremony are moving in a way that words cannot convey. Film would as you would have the visuals, the sounds and the amazing words. All the soldiers in their dress blues, the two who carried day's ashes into the chapel with the folded flag. That was the beginning and as I write and step back into the ceremony the tears flow again. We had a Mass, the gospel of Lazarus being risen from
The dead. I do not know what I really believe of all this but the metaphors are comforting.

Then to the cortège and that is what I have chosen to show today. Truly it was difficult to be eldest daughter and to remain present and take any photos. We had all hoped to follow the caisson where dad's ashes rode at the very back of the carriage being drawn by the horses, the one on the right without a rider. So poignant. I shot through the car window and hate that a stop sign is in the frame, we were strongly advised to go in cars as it was long ways from chapel to interment site, and the day was cold and blustery. The weather was fitting actually.

When we arrived at the site of the walls where deceased are interred the family was seated for the flag ceremony, a crisp unfolding and re-folding of the flag that was then beautifully presented to dad's wife. The 21 gun salute, seven rifles shooting three shells each in perfect unison, my brother carrying the beautiful engraved urn
William H Smith
March 17, 1917 December 23,2013

Greg is 6'4" and if he stretched he was able to placed the urn into the top row - top row fit the man who was my dad, who was the man who was over the US Internal Revenue Service during the 1960's until 1972, and so many other accomplishments.

It is a day I will never forget and if you are ever are able to watch a memorial service in a national cemetery in the United States for a soldier no
matter when he or she served, do.

I return home Sunday morning and am grateful for so much that I have been given - yesterday brought memory and all the gifts of my life reeling around me. I am so blessed. Thank you for all you all are too as I feel that good connection to my blip family too.