Fun at funerals!

A very good friend of my family's passed away a few days ago, and today was the funeral. Today was not only the first time I was up before 7:30 this summer, but it was also the first time for many things.

I should note that this was a Catholic ceremony, that I've been baptised a Protestant, and I know next to nothing about how this whole funeral thing works. So, we went to the church, and sat down in the pews. A good friend of the family approached me I was asked to be a pall bearer, so I got separated from my parents. Like I said, this was a Catholic ceremony, and I had no idea what was going on. My dad's Roman Catholic (non-practicing), so he could've told me what to do, but seeing as I wasn't near him (I was with the rest of the pall bearers up front), I pretty much was left following everyone elses' lead. At one point you have to shake the hand of everyone around you and say "peace be with you." Well, I didn't catch that part at first, and I thought my buddy next to me said "Pax Romana." I was thinking o....kayyyy..., but eventually I got it. Hey, Roman Catholic event, Pax Romana seemed fitting.

I hit my shin on the prayer bench, and I don't know if I was allowed to pray, what with being a heathen Protestant and all, but I figured, hey, it's the same Jesus, the fax gets sent to the same place. And then there was the crossing myself bit. Again, not sure if I was supposed to do that, but again I followed what other people were doing.

Best of all, at one point you get up and the priest feeds you a cracker, representing the body of Christ. I find this interesting, I have to look it up. Anyhow, it seems this whole thing is for Catholics only. Which, again, I am not. So anyhow, I get up, follow everyone else, eat my cracker, and sit down. Didn't find out til later that it was reserved for the Catholics, but meh, I figure the fellow upstairs wouldn't mind.

In retrospect, Jesus doesn't taste very good in cracker form. I didn't expect Ritz or anything, but at least Premium Plus. Then again, Jesus was a carpenter, and this tasted like sawdust. I think I've found the correlation.

I'd like to point out that I am for all intents and purposes agnostic, but that doesn't mean I renounce the Protestant faith. Faith is a tricky word, and seeing as I question this word far too often, I've decided that instead of trying to work my way into one faith, I strive to experience and understand as many religions as I can. I know the significance of religion, and how it can help people in ways that nothing else can, but at this point in my life, it's not for me.

Well, Sarah let me borrow Disgaea, so I think my productivity level will drop like a sack of bricks. Starting....now.

(editus maximus: Wow, one entire post without a single cuss? I'm good.)
(Latter-Day Edit: THIS GAME ROCKS. I can't stop playing.)


Moment of Zen: Cheers, "Grandma" Greco. Cheers.