The Girl Pallbearer

At my friend's father's funeral last year, there was a Girl Pallbearer. It stood out to me at first because I had never seen a girl pallbearer before. Then again, there's no reason it can't be a girl, right? I guess it's just another one of those things that we typically think falls to the men. I think it's sort of cool, actually. Have any of you seen a woman pallbearer before?

That brings me to another question. What other "jobs" do you typically see fall to a man, even though there is no reason a girl couldn't do it? (and I'm not talking about a man in the workplace, woman in the kitchen type of debate discussion...so don't go all women's lib on me here...)

Ok, so now that I've got Pallbearer on the brain, here is a phrase from a song that is now stuck in my head!!! (Bonus pts if you know the reference!)

I had a dream that I had to drive to Madison

to deliver a painting for some silly reason

I took a wrong turn and ended up in Michigan

Pallbearer road took me to a giant tire swing

All Dressed Up and No Place To Go

My friend Adam sent me this pic a week or two ago...

It made me laugh. Well, anyone that has known me long enough knows that there are many a time I will ponder much ado nothing. I obsess over it, research it, talk about it, and eventually blog about it. So, this pic got me thinking, "What would I want my epitaph to read?"

I decided on a little FB experiment. In my "status bar" I posed the question, "What would you want your headstone to say?" Additionally, I asked a few of my FB Friends during FB chat too. Here were a few of their responses:

Ruthykins: "Wife and Mother. Birthyear. Deathyear."
ActionJackson: "Good man. Good Father. Served his country. Did his best to serve God."
BishopsWife: "She's Dead...All Dead!"
Travman: Since I will be buried face-down and and rear end pointing to the sky (referring to his sentence to Hell) I want a my headstone to read "Please Park Bike Here."

I had a good chuckle over that one. I enjoy walking through graveyards (during broad daylight, of course) and reading the different headstones. I like to see what year the person was born and how old they were when they died. I like to imagine their story. Everyone has a story, it just takes finding it to make it interesting.

Some headstones are extremely detailed, like these:

I don't know who W.E. Peters was, but he was sure "detailed" in his "work". Perhaps he was the county cemetery caretaker or something. Here's another sad one...

You've probably all heard of celebrities and some of the outlandish things they have on their headstones. Here are a few examples...

Then there are the headstones that are a little confusing. Is it a religious reference? An attempt at humor? And inside joke only the family will understand? Case in point...

I'm leaning towards Religious Reference.

Here are a few others I have found to be peculiar or funny. I think the wording is what makes this one stand out. I like to call it, "The Exodus"... Entered life via Baltimore. Exit Via Albuquerque.

This one is definitely a family "inside" joke...

Then there is the obvious...

...the extremely simple...

Of course, perhaps it is the guy's last name, BYE, in which case the family is extremely clever.

And this last one is my favorite of all. Perhaps because it reminds me of something my parents would totally do...

I love the Boss & Bossier bit. I can just hear it now... WIFE: "What do you want on your headstone when you die, dear?" HUSBAND: "Oh... I don't know; Whatever is Fair." She gets the last laugh. Too Funny!

What epitaph-style do you like? Simple? Lots of Detail? Humorous?

One year for Halloween I made tombstones for the yard for my kids' party (even though when my mom did it, i was like, totally em-bar-assed). Here were some Epitaphs I did...

1- Here lays John Doe. All dressed up and no place to go.

2- Here lays Fred. Hanged by mistake, sorry you're dead!

3- Here lays that one kid. Nobody liked him. Everybody hated him. Guess he's eating worms.

4- Here lays the last dog that pooped in this yard.

Here's what I am sort of leaning towards for myself...

She laughed, she cried

She lived, she died.

Sort of sums it all up, don'tcha think?

So, c'mon, let's hear it bloggy fans... what do you want your headstone to say???