Funerals at Arlington are a strange two-part affair. The first event is the stunner- the one in which you discover that an old pal or professional acquaintance has passed from this world to another. There is a grieving family, a memorial service, and tears.
Then the matter is turned over to the Cemetery Administration for the organizing of the official ceremony with the Honor Guard of the respective Service and the horsemen of the Old Guard, the 3rd US Infantry, who wrangle the caisson and horses of escort.
Months then pass until the necessary resources are available to provide the nation’s honors to the deceased. Time had come around again after nearly a year. It is a curious process, this Arlington business, though I doubt if I will mind when my time comes around.
When the news came last year about Rick Schiff I was stunned. I had been off doing whatever it was that I do, and had missed his last illness. Rick had been a good pal for decades, on active duty and in his post-Navy life. We used to lunch when he was at the Indian Gaming commission and in the Homeland Security business after 9/11.
I had the chance to go skiing with him at Wisp Mountain near their retirement home at Deep Creek in Garret County, MD. It was the last time I tried to ski, which made the trip especially memorable. Then we drank our way around the lake at the various establishments he had grown to know.
We had a blast. He has always had an impish sense of humor and tremendous insight into how things really work.
The time for Part Dieux came around last Thursday. My personal life was in turmoil, but that was a purely secondary matter to the importance of honoring his memory.
He was 71 when he left us. Way too soon, I thought, uncomfortably aware of my current age and litany of infirmities.
I parked as cose as I could get to the Old Post Chapel as I could, and slipped into a pew at the back to wait for the official moment for the service to begin. I have been in that place a couple dozen times now, and it is as close to a local church as I get these days.
The service was presided over by a Rabbi who marched through it with solemn dignity. The troops were arrayed outside in crisp dress whites. When the service was done, we filed out of the chapel and found our cars to drive through the back gate and down to the gravesite for the official honors.
My thoughts and prayers are with Judi, Karen and Daniel at this sad time. But it is done now, and I think there is a sense of closure. I drove away from the mobile enclosure where the official ceremony, the formation of honor guard Sailors, the firing party, and the mobile enclosure and saw that they had moved the urn over to where it will be interred.
There was a man who appeared to be looking at it with professional interest. It is always strange being ushered away at the end of the ceremonies, since the last work is not done yet.
I made a note of the location. He will lie not far from Mac Showers, and I think my buddy the U2 pilot is in the same section.
I will be seeing Rick frequently in the years to come. I miss him a lot.
Copyright 2016 Vic Socotra
www.vicsocotra.com