Today was the day......

Today was the day of my Mum's funeral.

She went into the fire in a wicker basket.

All the family were there.

Except me.

I was out in the middle of the field, 

with Lester, Boolie, Gus, Maz, and Blue.

So what was I doing?

Perhaps having a moment of loving thought,

of taking the time to pause in reflection,

of being aware of a new chapter in my life,

of the turning of the years,

of the cycle of life.

Actually, no. 

What I was doing was helping Lester do some fencing, 

which was an urgent job,

because the other field has become partially flooded again,

because it has rained again,

because we can't get the animals on to that field to graze again,

which means that Station Field has to be used again,

but we have just put fertiliser on to that field to help it along,

and we have just put fencing wire along the long length of the internal fencing poles,

but since the other field can't now be used,

we have to use this field,

and the animals will get tangled in the fence wire,

unless we get the fencing grillage up on that wire,

which is what we did in the rain today.

Today was the day of my Mum's funeral.

I didn't go to the funeral because my health has not been kind to me.

Oh not of the 'near death' stuff, 

but of cough, cold, messy tummy, crunchy chest and dreadful tiredness, 

that is what has been set upon me since my Mum finally managed to pass away.

She wanted to go,

Kept asking for more morphine,

Kept on saying "Why am I still here", "I want to go"....

And in the end she did. 

Today was day of my Mum's funeral.

I think she would have liked the wicker basket,

with the round handles looking like port holes,

and the duffle coat type fastenings keeping the lid from opening,

of the theme song from Titanic walking her into the crematorium,

and 'Bring me sunshine' being played as she departed that place, 

Yes, I think, all in all, that she would have enjoyed her send off.

Today was the day of my Mum's funeral.

Rest in peace, Mum,

God speed you towards the light.

And I thought of the family giving you your send off

as I stood in the rain,

fencing our land,

and smiling up at the sky,

and giving praise and thanks

for you walking beside me as my Mum,

for nearly sixty six years

as I held on to the grillage to stop it from buckling

while Lester clipped it to the wire

so that our animals can graze on the field tomorrow,

because life goes on....

x