Homeward Bound: A Great Funeral

Last week I headed up to Idaho for the funeral of one of Eric's uncles.  This might sound odd, but it was a great funeral!  Uncle Lyle (age 70) had been a rancher his entire life and as an adult was a sheep farmer; a modern day shepherd, if you will.  He was one of those quiet, strong types; the salt of the earth and extremely humble.  Eric's mom presented a "Life Sketch" of Lyle at the funeral, regaling many stories from his life.  Then one of Lyle's longest and best friends spoke.  It was just one of those funerals in which the speakers said things the family needed to hear, things that were obviously inspired.  Of course, at a time like this, there are many tears -- but the spirit in that funeral was so very strong, even someone like me who knew very little of him still got weepy. Then Eric's youngest cousin sang the song, "Homeward Bound" (written by Marta Keen -- not the S& G version).  I had heard it sung before by the MoTab (Mormon Tabernacle Choir, for those living outside of Utah).  This time though, hearing it was different.  Possibly, because we had just heard about this great man's life and probably because we were already prone to emotion, but mostly because of the words sung by that sweet little voice.  I hadn't really ever thought of the lyrics until Mackenzie was singing them.  I thought, "How fitting, especially for a farm boy, especially for Lyle."  I'm sure he approved.  Here is a great recording sung by Fraser Walters.  I've put the lyrics below.



{{CLICK TO ENLARGE}}

Isn't that just lovely?

After the funeral, we spent the rest of the weekend staying INDOORS avoiding all of the SNOW {yuck}.  We played tons of games, watched movies and ate until we were ready to explode.  We had tons of fun with lots of family.  Indeed, it was a great funeral!  :)