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Bless us, O Lord, and these Thy gifts
When their new home was completed in Eckley, Seamus and Kathleen invited their friends and neighbors from Port Costa to join them for a feast as Father Garvey came over to bless the house. It was a simple structure, with lots of room for their growing family. Seamus was especially pleased with the long porch on the front of the house. It afforded a grand view of the Carquinez Strait and was protected enough that he could sit outside enjoying the vista even if it was raining. There were enough rooms so that each child could have their own room, though the twins insisted that they wanted to stay in the same room. Because they enjoyed having people over for dinner or other occasions, the dining room was large enough for at least twelve people. Kathleen reigned over a large kitchen that included a small breakfast nook in the far corner. Seamus had a separate building constructed for his car with a small wood shop in the back. He did not do much carpentry anymore, but it was still a favorite hobby for him.
For several hours people came and went, had something to eat and drink while looking over the new Gilchrist residence, one that they named Cummeragh. When the last guest had departed, Seamus called his family together on the porch and asked them to join him in praying together the Rosary.
"We're here in a new and beautiful house because of God's special love and mercy. If we want to stay together we need each other and we need Our Lady so we'll ask her special help right now."
And so they prayed. Remembering how his own mother would ask God's angels to watch over him, it was his special devotion to add after each decade of the Rosary a special prayer to God's Holy Angels,
Angel of God, my guardian dear,
to whom God's love entrusts me here,
ever this day be at my side
to light, to guard, to rule, and to guide. Amen!
But if Seamus thought that meals were an important part of life at home, he never considered that eating was a part of life for the cemetery. However, as the area grew more and more people moved to Benicia and its environs and they brought with them their own national customs, customs that often meant having a meal in the cemetery, even at the grave itself.
His first experience of a meal in the cemetery was with a family from Asia. He wasn't sure what country they were from, but that wasn't important. Before the hearse even arrived with the coffin, a truck drove into the cemetery and parked near the grave. A young man took a folding table out of the back and set it up near the grave. Seamus was watching from his office, wondering what was going on. The young man took a clean, white table cloth out and carefully spread it on the table. He then took small paper bags out, bags like his children used for their lunches at school, and arranged them in neat rows. He ten set up another table and brought out a glass punch bowl that he filled with some kind of fruit juice. Seamus was tempted to go out and find out what was going on, but he feared that he and the young man would not be able to speak the same language so he thought that he had better stay in the background.
When the hearse finally showed up with the coffin, the family was walking behind it, crying and beating their breasts. They followed the hearse all the way over to the grave and then immediately the crying stopped. Six boys walked with military precision to the rear of the hearse and waited to the new mortician, Scott, to open the door. Instead of carrying the coffin at arm's length, they hoisted it to their shoulders and walked over the grave. The priest, a visitor to Saint Dominic's, spoke in their own language. When the prayers in Latin were finished the family began to pray, but instead simply reciting the words of their prayers, they sang them. Seamus had no idea what they were saying, but he hoped that God had someone up in heaven to translate this language just like he had hoped that God had someone to translate all of the Latin prayers.
Just then Seamus noted that while Caucasians generally wore black to funerals, these people wore white. The women had long white dresses on and most of the men had white scarves tied around their foreheads. Seamus shrugged his shoulders and said to himself, Well, we can't all be the same. Just then the family motioned to him to come over to the grave. Seamus had been watching at a little distance, not wanting to interfere. The young man who had put out the paper bags and glass bowl spoke in perfect English and asked him to please lower the coffin. When that was done, they wanted to watch the grave be filled in. This was unusual since most people were content to let Seamus and his assistants fill in the grave after they had left the cemetery. But if they want to watch the process, that's their choice.
Seamus motioned for his assistants to bring the dirt over and fill in the grave. The work took almost twenty minutes, but the whole time they stood there watching and singing their prayers. When they were finally finished, the priest went over to the table and blessed the bags and one was given to each person. Seamus had stepped away from the grave, again not wanting to interfere with this family's customs. Just then a young girl brought a bag and a glass of juice to Seamus, bowed deeply to him and gave the food and drinks to him and turned away. As she was walking away he bowed back to her, not knowing what to say or do. He opened the bag to examine its contents and quickly ate the sandwich inside and the apple. Just as he was finishing the glass of juice, another girl came to him, bowed, and handed him a small red envelope. Seamus again bowed and accepted the envelope. Seamus had do idea what was going one, but he smiled nonetheless. He didn't open the envelope until the family had left the cemetery and when he did, he found a single dollar bill. Seamus never spent that dollar, but always kept it in his desk. Some day he hoped that he could learn what this was all about.
But if he didn't understand Oriental customs, he thought that he understood the way people from Ireland and Europe acted at the times of death. He was used to the idea of having a meal after the burial, but it was usually in the home of the family. Certainly this is what the Fathers did when they buried one of the priests in the circle. After the burial prayers, they would walk back down the hill to priory and have a meal before they returned to their own parishes.
However, Brother Norbert's funeral was different from other funerals for the priests and brothers. Seamus felt that he must have been well known and loved because not only was there a large number of Dominican present, a large number of lay people had come. The day of his burial was a beautiful day. The sky was clear and the temperature was comfortable. Everything seemed to be as normal. Father Ryan was saying the prayers, but Seamus did notice Father LaBelle standing over by the granite cross. No sooner had Father Ryan finished the last prayer in Latin when one of the priests began to sing
Salve, Regina, Mater misericordiae...
Over the years Seamus had heard this sung many times, but he never learned the words. He knew that it was the prayer Hail, Holy Queen that was said at the end of the Rosary, but he was never able to catch all of the Latin words. Besides, he thought, I don't speak Latin so why pray in Latin? I like to talk to God in my own language. For me, that's the best!
But they had their ways and Seamus knew enough to not interfere when the Fathers came to bury one of their own.
As they finally came to the end of the Salve, just as he was going to bring the bucket of dirt over and lower the coffin, Father LaBelle motioned with his hands and he saw a truck from the local Italian restaurant drive to the granite Cross. Seamus wondered what was going one here and his questions were soon answered. The truck drivers quickly set up two large tables in front of the Cross and out many boxes with hot Italian Pizza. He didn't care much for pizza, but his children loved this American treat. When the pizza was neatly arranged, a large tub of soda pop mixed with ice was put out. The Fathers and Brothers immediately began to grab their lunch until someone cried out in a loud voice,
"In Nomine Patris..."
With many looks of embarrassment showing, Father LaBelle gave a blessing before eating and the gaiety of the moment was revived. Seamus wanted to lower the coffin, out of respect for Brother Norbert, but too many of the priests were going over to the coffin and patting it with their hands saying, "Bye-bye, Norbert!" It was as if they wanted him to be there as a participant in this very unique picnic. Later he was told that Brother Norbert, as good as he was in many ways, loved eating all kinds of food that was not very nourishing. He always loved a good picnic and was the life of any gathering of the Fathers and Brothers. He loved nothing better to tell a joke and if he was the center of it, even better. As Seamus listened to these stories, he understood that even in death Brother Norbert was going to be at the center of the party. However, he was very relieved when the pizza truck finally took the tables away and he was able to lower Brother Norbert's coffin and fill in the grave.
Normally Seamus did not come to the cemetery on Saturday's. That was the day that he liked to spend with his family. Often they would go on picnics, though they preferred to go to a beach if the weather permitted. One November, however, Seamus did go to the cemetery. A group of Mexican Nuns called him one day and asked if they could bring their Catechism Class to the cemetery for a celebration of the "Dia de Los Muertos."
"The Dia what?" Seamus inquired.
His Friend Maria from Port Costa in the early days had never taught him those words.
The Sisters explained that this meant "The Day of the Dead." They told him that it was the custom in Mexico for families to go to the cemetery on All Souls Day and take care of the grave. Often they would spend all night at the cemetery singing songs and praying. They would bring a grand feast, but at first it was not for the enjoyment of the family. It was for the dead person to enjoy. They would neatly arrange the food around the gravestone and leave it there until sometime in the later afternoon when they would finally eat it. But, the Sisters told Seamus, the dead people have already eaten it and we are just eating the leftovers.
To Seamus this seemed quite odd, but since he always liked to learn about other people and their customs and traditions, he made arrangements for the Sisters to bring their class to the cemetery on the Saturday just before All Souls Day. He could have let one of his assistants open the gates, but Seamus did the job himself. This was going to be too interesting to pass up. The sisters arrived about ten minutes before their students. They took the time to set up their decorations on the outdoor altar. They had colorful flowers and special sweet breads. They put pumpkins and other vegetables all over the altar, along with a small American flag and a small Mexican Flag.
When the students finally arrived, Seamus was impressed with the devotion that these little people were showing. He did not understand the Sisters, but the children were being very attentive. One of the Sisters took a guitar out of its case and began to play some songs, songs that the children joined in on at the top of their lungs. When they were finished, the students came to the Sisters one by one and were given one of the special sweet breads. Sister even called Seamus over and gave one to him, and discovering that he had a wife and four children, five more to take home for his family. He was so taken with the beautiful faith of these children, that he offered to give them a tour of the cemetery and tell them about some of the interesting people that were buried there.
The outdoor altar was rarely used. More than anything, it served a decorative function. However, one year Father Thompson came to see Seamus and told him that he wanted to say Mass at the outdoor altar on All Souls Day itself. In fact, that year November Second was the first Saturday of November and so this was the perfect chance to help educate the people about the Catholic Faith's view of the dead and what cemeteries mean. Seamus was pleased to hear what Father Thompson suggested and marked his calendar to make sure that nothing else could be scheduled on that day.
The Mass itself would be normal; it would be like any other Mass, but three things stood out in Seamus' mind that would make that Mass special. First, when the people came into the cemetery they were all to be given a small piece of paper on which to write the names of their beloved dead. Those names would be placed on the altar just like the All Souls Day Pious Lists that people turned in at the Church. Second, Father Thompson asked if Seamus could prepare a list of all of the people that had been buried in the past year at Saint Dominic's. They would be hung near the altar as a special reminder of those who had gone before. Seamus was very pleased to be a part of the preparations for this Mass because it seemed to him that this plan would help people see some of the beauty that was in the cemetery, not the beauty of the roses, though he was very proud of the. Rather, Seamus liked the idea that people could see the beauty of the people buried there and that, by name, they were still part of the life of the parish community.
Seamus thought that maybe seventy to one hundred people would come for the Mass. As it was, more than three hundred people came to the Mass and had a wonderful time, not only attending Mass, but also in visiting the graves of their beloved dead after the Mass. For a few minutes while preparing the list of recent burials Seamus had gotten annoyed with the tediousness of his task. When, however, he saw the people go up to the lists and find the name of their friend or relative. Many of the people touched the name on the list with their fingers and then made the Sign of the Cross. Other kissed their fingers before touching the names.
This, Seamus thought, was an idea that he would have to remember, one that he wanted to repeat next year. The only addition that he thought about was suggesting that the women of the parish serve a luncheon after next year's All Souls Day Mass. If the Asian People and the Mexican People can eat in the cemetery, why not the rest of us?