Drove the 3 hours to the crematorium five of us in the car.
Handful of jws from the jah-jireh home were decanting from the jah-jireh home bus,
we stood around waiting in the porch, noticed 2 people and child from nans home congregation,(woohoo pushed the boat out then!).
Overheard the home town jw lady telling the jah-jireh pepes that the relative wouldn't be present as the relative couldn't cope with being there. (don't think she realised we were waiting for that funeral)
Coffin arrived so we went and sat down in the relative row. (slight confusion in the ranks)
Unfamiliar elder obviously from that end not this starts the sermon.
Ellen/Helens sermon followed (who the heck helen was i have no idea but she was alternated in right through the sermon.......maybe there was a bogof on the coffin deal........ )
No info had been forthcoming from 'relative' but gleaned info (at least the ashford lady musta filled him in a bit)..... married had children and was survived by one relative her *daughter* who couldn't be there. (scotch mist moment while penny drops 5 pepes definately not jw sitting in front row)
Awkward pause while he asks if theres any relatives or friends in pews......ummm yup "grandaughter actually" and spread my hands out to my off-spring.
Born 1915, baptised 1947, was one of the first jws in ashford in the days when there was just a tin hut and the closest toilet was in the pub down the road. she led bible studies with her friend elsie asks if anyone remembers and looks at me...(probably checking he's got that right cos obviously now he's not so sure) of course things have changed since then.
60+ years taking care of her brothers and sisters building her heavenly bank account, millions now living will never die (hey didnt that change?) anyway don't think he quite recovered from the family moment cos he fluffed his scriptures through the infomercial.
Lots of mentions of 'our souls' sounded like arseholes this and arseholes that......bit hard to keep a straight face for those.
keep your eyes on the prize.....oh grief it had to be that one...sigh
prayer mentioning helen again...(gritting my teeth by now....ellen!! fer fex sake its ellen!!!! )
my nan was only ever known as Nelly amongst her friends and relatives, Nelly didnt get a look in but i'm sure Helen was very grateful for the honourable mention.
When my non jw grandad died the elders did his funeral for my nan.
When my dfd dad died one of the local elders offered to do his. (his wife declined)
My nan who put in 61 years of faithful dub service and ran round looking after the local dubs for years, feeding their old, tending their sick. The woman who put in the foundations with her little handful of friends into the two congregations they have today, didnt even warrant a sermon from a local elder who knew her name, never mind the lack of presense from all her so called *brothers and sisters*.
i did feel a bit sorry for the poor guy doing the talk, he did the best he could for a total stranger, it was nice of the home town jw lady and her hubby and littlun to go (this is the kind of jw i was referring to in earlier post), and of course the home for sending a handful so the place wasnt so empty.
