During that period we made a lot of friends and one of those friends was a man whom we saw at the pool and during visits to our neighbors. He was a gentleman and he was from our home state, Michigan, so he was automatically a good guy. He was retired and his age was appropriate to traditional retirement. Age plays no favorites and he eventually died. We attended his funeral with our neighbors.
His interment was to be in a mausoleum that was located on
the outskirts of West Palm Beach. After the services we shared a ride with
friends and went out 441 along a containment canal to the burial site. We were
in a funeral convoy in well-marked cars. On the way, I was riding in the back seat;
I was looking out of the window and noticed an older black man fishing in the
canal with a cane pole. When he saw the convoy he placed the pole on the
ground, stood up, removed his hat, placed his hand over his heart and remained
in that position, I presume, until we passed.
That, to this day, is one of the most elegant acts of
humanity I have been privileged to witness. The bib overhauls and straw hat no
longer described him. His beauty was in his actions.
November 25/2012
Interesting you should mention the man standing with his hat off. It was a custom taught to me by my Uncle Ray. It was one of those things you did like standing with your hand over your heart when the US flag passed during a parade.
ReplyDeleteIt is obviously not taught these days. How sad we have forgotten the common courtesies and rituals that added a measure of decency to our lives.
Now we pepper spray people a stores to save the discounts for ourselves.
Love this story, Herb. It actually made me smile a little as it reminded me of an old joke. I wonder if you'd mind if I shared it here on your nickel:
ReplyDeleteTwo men were out golfing when a funeral cortege passed on a nearby road. One man removed his hat and held it over his heart until the procession had passed. The other man said, "What a beautiful gesture to show such respect for that person." "Well," said the first man, "seems only right. We've been married for 25 years."
:)
I don't share Jacqui's view that some bygone era was more courteous than this. Society holds a huge breadth of 'types'--always has. But I find amazingly courteous people everywhere I go. And I find that courtesy usually begets courtesy. Admittedly, I avoid the Black Friday crowds.