Saturday... A day to remember forever.

All I can say is WOW. I was looking forward to this day. I was not scared. I knew that today would be a wonderful send off for Chris. I was not disappointed.

The day started around 5:30 AM. Yesterday was a rainy day and so was the evening. I was sleeping with the windows opened and at 5:30 AM I was awakened by a huge gust of wind that blew the trees for about 10 minutes or so. It was as iff a hurricane was blowing through. After this short time the wind stopped blowing and the trees became calm. From that point on the weather started clearing up and continued to be as perfect as it possible could. I know that this was Chris clearing up the weather for everyone who attended.

The funeral home sent a car to come and pick us up at the house and take us to the church. We arrived around 9:45 and the sun was shining brightly and the wind was blowing a little bit. The church was already about 3/4 full when they seated thed kids and I. The service was absolutely perfect. The readings that Jenny, Alex and I chose were very appropriate and were listened to very attentively by everyone there. The music was beautiful. When I stood up to receive communion I looked back at all of the people in the church and the entire church was almost full. It brought tears to my eyes to see all of the people there to say their last goodbyes.

Chris's sister Jenny played a song during the service that I had not heard before. It is a country western song by Craig Morgan entitled "Tough". It did not leave a dry eye in the house. Here are the lyrics:

She’s in the kitchen at the crack of dawn
Bacon’s on, coffee’s strong
Kids running wild, taking off their clothes
If she’s a nervous wreck, well it never shows
Takes one to football and one to dance
Hits the Y for aerobics class
Drops by the bank, stops at the store
Has on a smile when I walk through the door
The last to go to bed, she’ll be the first one up
And I thought I was tough

Chorus
She’s strong, pushes on, can’t slow her down
She can take anything life dishes out
There was a time
Back before she was mine
When I thought I was tough

We sat there five years ago
The doctors let us know, the test showed
She’d have to fight to live, I broke down and cried
She held me and said it’s gonna be alright
She wore that wig to church
Pink ribbon pinned there on her shirt
No room for fear, full of faith
Hands held high singing Amazing Grace
Never once complained, refusing to give up
And I thought I was tough

Chorus
She’s strong, pushes on, can’t slow her down
She can take anything life dishes out
There was a time
Back before she was mine
When I thought I was tough

She’s a gentle word, the sweetest kiss
A velvet touch against my skin
I’ve seen her cry, I’ve seen her break
But in my eyes, she’ll always be strong

There was a time
Back before she was mine
When I thought I was tough


It was very beautiful and the lyrics were right on. Chris was tough and this song was written as if it was about her! Click here and you can listen to it yourself!!!

After the service we mingled around in front of the church for a little while. I saw so many people that I have not seen in a long while. It was so nice. The procession took about 15 minutes through downtown Frederick to get to the cemetery. The police had several intersections blocked off so that we could scoot through. Once we arrived at the cemetery we pulled up along where the tent was. Off in the distance a person began playing the bagpipes. I don't recall the song but it was absolutely wonderful. It was a beautiful addition to the ceremony.

The kids and I were seated next to Chris's parents right in front of the casket. Father Wayne was there and said some more beautiful words. The flowers were brought to the site and placed on the casket and near it. After some time it was time to say good bye. It was very, very hard for all of us. We were finally able to make our way back to the car which took us home from the cemetery.

Everything was just perfect. When we arrived home we saw that several friends and neighbors had taken over the house and brought in tables, chairs, food, drinks, EVERYTHING needed to feed a couple hundred people. Many people came over to the house for awhile. It was just wonderful and made me feel very good to have them there. There were relatives, friends, bosses, neighbors and everyone in between here!

One thing that will stay with me forever is when the Lycoming Women's Lacrosse team showed up in their team van and a couple of cars. Out piled about 30+ beautiful women athletes who came to support Alex and the rest of the family. They made the trip down from PA early in the morning and stayed until late afternoon. This is Alex's family away from home and when I saw them I knew that I had no worries about her when she would return. They would take care of her for me.

Later in the day everyone eventually went home and it was just the kids and I along with my sister. We were exhausted. I finally went to bed around 11. I'd been sleeping in my room all week but this night was really difficult. I laid in bed for quite awhile. Saying goodbye is a very hard thing to do. I'll miss her so very much.