To the Country.

Yesterday I went to the country. My Grandpa Wayne passed away this week, and was buried in the place he loved the most. Crow, Oregon.
It was such a beautiful day. The long drive to and from was mostly dark and foggy, but Springfield and especially Crow was sunny, crisp,  and altogether otherworldly.
I took this picture (on my phone and in the car) of the tree that lives at the bottom of the hill guarding the Canaday family graveyard. All the old Canadays and Twists have been buried there for centuries, and it was sweet to lay another to rest in such good company.
My grandpa (my mom's dad) was a logger, a cowboy, and character! He said that when he died all he wanted was to be buried in a pine box. So my uncle, being a carpenter, made him the most beautifully crafted pine coffin I've ever seen. (It puts all those Victorian silk and brass numbers to shame.)  And it was made extra long so that he could be buried in his cowboy hat.
Everyone yesterday agreed that his guitar playing and old country songs were a part of his lasting legacy to us. I can remember his singing almost better than I can the sound of his speaking voice. Kind of like Johnny Cash, but totally his own.
He will be missed, but we are celebrating his coming home to Jesus! He is no longer frail, or suffering*, and he has a new song in his heart.

* He was a tough 'un! He had weathered it all, and had been in hospice on and off for 2 1/2 years!