Jul 16 2008
A joke from my Yooper uncle
As a young minister, I was asked by a funeral director to hold a graveside service for a homeless man who had no family or friends. The funeral was to be held at a new cemetery way back in the country, and this man would be the first to be buried there.
I was not familiar with the backwoods area, and I soon became lost. Being a typical man, I did not stop to ask for directions. I finally arrived an hour late. I saw the backhoe and the open
grave, but the hearse was nowhere in sight. The gravediggers were eating lunch. I apologized to them for my tardiness, and I stepped to the side of the open grave. There I saw the vault lid
already in place.
I assured the workers I would not hold them up for long. The workers gathered around the grave and stood silently as I began to pour out my heart and soul. As I preached about ‘looking forward to a brighter tomorrow’ and ‘the glory that is to come,’ the workers began to say ‘Amen,’ ‘Praise the Lord,’ and ‘Glory!’ The fervor of these men truly inspired me. So, I preached and I preached like I had never preached before, all the way from Genesis to Revelations.
I finally closed the lengthy service with a prayer, thanked the men, and walked to my car. As I was opening the door and taking off my coat, I heard one digger say to another, ‘I ain’t EVER seen nuttin’ like that before, and I been puttin’ in septic tanks for t’irty years.”
