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"A Most Unusual Upbringing”
- University of North Texas Press
- Chapter
- Additional Information
A MOST UNUSUAL UPBRINGING by A. C. Sanders Most men stumble into their life’s role. A chance encounter sparks a flame, a career pursued; a birthright endows one a profession. Some drift from trade to trade until something sticks. Others simply drift. My grandfather, Bab, labored as a ranch hand, then a butcher, until finding a life’s calling when he landed a job at a furniture store sometime around 1920. The owner operated a funeral parlor in the back of the store. Eventually, Bab became one of the first licensed morticians in the Lubbock area. Until his mind became fogged with dementia, my father often recounted with nostalgia those days at the furniture store. As a boy, he was assigned the daily duty of dusting the furniture displays. Often a call came in from a ranch or small community out on the Staked Plains requesting the services of an undertaker. Bab loaded his equipment into a Model T Ford, Dad hopped into the passenger seat, and off they went across the prairie, there being few roads to their destinations. They traversed one property to another. At each fence line, Dad jumped out, opened the gate, then closed it after the old Ford passed through. Flats and breakdowns were commonplace, and ruts suddenly transformed to axle-deep loblolly should a thunderstorm strike. A forty-to-sixty-mile journey occupied most of a day. Upon their arrival at the ranch, neighbors already gathering, the men helped Bab lay the body out on the dining-room table. If there was not one available, he hauled in a portable embalming table which unfolded much like a massage table used today for home visits. Dad helped Bab wash and embalm the body. Women convened in the kitchen to prepare and spread out food. Men retired out back to build a coffin. Bab and Dad dressed the body, if it were a man; women dressed and fixed the hair of a woman. The men helped put the body into the coffin, then moved it into the parlor for viewing by friends, family, and neighbors. (In the latter 95 part of the nineteenth century, the term casket replaced coffin; the new nomenclature stems from a French word referring to a special box that holds precious items, like a jewelry box.) Folks converged from miles around. That evening everyone feasted on potluck. Depending on the religious persuasion, a wake was sounded with much singing, praying and storytelling. An old fear from antiquity, before the age of embalming, professed that a deceased might not actually be dead, and thus could be buried alive. The celebration and noise making was an effort to “wake the dead” prior to burial the next day. All attempts failing, they assumed it safe to proceed with the funeral. Women slept in the house. Men bedded down in the barn, and pulled shifts “keeping the vigil.” This tradition served two purposes—one spiritual, one practical. Religious lore alleged that Satan would slip in under cover of darkness and steal the soul of the deceased. However, he was powerless to achieve this in the presence of a Christian guardian, or after a proper burial was completed . Around-the-clock vigil against insurgency by the devil insured the spirit of a deceased was launched in the right direction. A more practical reason for the vigil was to protect the body from desecration by predators, human and animal. Often the deceased was dressed in finery, appointed with jewelry and other family heirlooms, until after the funeral. In some cases these artifacts were buried with the body. Also, in isolated areas of the country, especially if embalming was not performed, animals might come around and feed on, or maul the deceased. Keeping the vigil provided both spiritual and earthly security over the dearly departed. Next morning began with a huge breakfast served up by the women. Platters filled with eggs, bacon, slabs of ham, and biscuits were passed around—perhaps even grits or potatoes ladled with gravy. Liberally garnished with the delicacies of homemade jellies, jams, or applesauce, the meal was washed down with hot coffee. The body was loaded onto a buckboard wagon or truck for a final trip to the church, if nearby, or to the cemetery. Family and friends processed on horseback, wagon, and automobile. Burial 96 Getting There: Rituals, Ceremonies, and the Process of Dying took place in a community cemetery, or a family plot on the ranch. After the graveside service was...