Hungary - Day 4 - :'-(
This was a hard day if ever there was one.
We buried our dad today.
The service that the priest had was a very good one. When my dad cam back to live here it seemed that he found religion a bit more. He went to church every week and got to know the priest. Likewise, the priest really knew him too.
(Astonishingly, I was able to speak along with the Apostle's Creed in Hungarian. I have no idea how, but I was able to.)
Most of the funerals that I've been to (thankfully that hasn't been too many) the service was relative generic. This one was different. Even though it was in Hungarian I was able to follow it just fine. It was a nice interwoven speech connecting the reading which was something along the lines of a traveler asking Jesus about how to get to heaven -- the answer being "just follow me." Followed by talking about my dad's life: leaving hungary to a new land, relating it to leaving this mortal life. Incidentally this makes more sense in Hungarian since heaven is "menyorság" (sp?) which means roughly heaven-country.
My dad left Hungary shortly after the uprising of 1956 coming to America through Austria. When leaving he had to sneak through a secure border that was guarded by soldiers. He made it. He came to the United States where he proudly served in the Army. At one stint he watched over the Hungarian crown that was held at Ft. Knox at the time. He met my mom in Cleveland and they married. They had me and my brother.
My dad was never happy in Cleveland. He eventually left (though never really leaving the relationship with my mom despite not one but two divorces) and went to Florida. Then to California. After reaching 65 he retired and decided that with his limited (and now fixed) income he would go back home to Monor in Hungary. His brother lives nearby in Káva.
His family had some land (forest really) in Káva. He sold his share and bought himself a little house in Monoriérdő (Trans: Monor's Forest). He brought with him his Toyota truck and his 1999 Harley Davidson Sportster. He lived well here in Hungary. He didn't have much in terms on material possessions, but he more than made up for it by living well. Visiting places. Meeting new people.
Living.
He was visiting Egypt at the time he passed away.
All of the relatives that are nearby (and some not-so-nearby) came out for the funeral. Meeting lots of folks that I hadn't met since I was five. We did a little talking after the service at a local meeting-hall / restaurant / resort / ??. It was good to talk to my relatives that I haven't really had a chance to get to know ever. Even though it was hard since they spoke only Hungarian and I speak it a bit less well.
C'est la vie. It was good none-the-less.
Later we went on a nice walk by the Duna (Danube). See the pics that are posted for some amazing shots!!
The day was a fitting way to remember his life. It was as good as one can expect from a circumstance such as this.
In case anyone was wondering, the tweet was mainly to remember where the cemetery is since I don't have it marked anyway. Locals know, but well, I'm not a local.