Flowers for funeral

 I was at mom’s home to attend my uncle’s funeral in 2019 late January. He died because his liver was not functioning properly. My uncle lived at my mom’s home because he was the last child of the family. In the Zulu, culture the last-born boy stays at home. Even if he gets married, his family stays at his parent’s home. My grandparents stayed in rural areas. My uncle’s funeral was held there. In the morning, my sister’s and I had to prepare breakfast for everyone. While we busy one of my mom’s cousins went out to get flowers.

When she came back, (she already knew that I love flowers) she gave me flowers to arrange them and put them in the vase. I was happy that she chose me to arrange the flowers. I love to arrange or rearrange flowers.  I sometimes talk with the flowers while arranging even if they cannot talk back to me.

While I was arranging flowers, I was sad about the loss of my uncle. Those flowers were used to decorate the table where the funeral service was held.

After the funeral service, we had to go to the grave site to lay his body to rest. The grave site was not far, we walked with my sisters and other family members. On our way, I picked a yellow flower that grew with grass. In my head, I was thinking that my uncle was still young to die. When we get there, my family was about to say goodbye by pouring the soil. It is a tradition to pour soil inside the grave, which symbolizes goodbye. I used both the flower and the soil to say goodbye to my uncle. The elders say it is a way of shaking hands with our lost loved ones for the last time by pouring soil on top of the coffin.

My family poured the soil and I went there with the flower I pick on the way. I threw it with the soil while I was sad and crying. It made me realize that a person can die at any time like the flower that I picked along the way. Therefore, I learned a lesson that death does not wait for any aging.