The service was to be at a pauper's cemetery in the back country, and as I was not familiar with the backwoods, I got lost and being a typical man, I didn't stop for directions.
I finally arrived an hour late and saw the funeral guy had evidently left, and the hearse was nowhere in sight. There were only the grave diggers and crew there and they were eating lunch.
I felt so badly and apologized to the men for being late.
I went to the side of the grave and looked down and the vault-lid had already been put in place. I didn't know what else to do, So I started to play.
Surprisingly the workers put down their lunches and began to gather around me. Well I played out my heart and soul for this man with no family and friends. I played like I've never played before for this homeless man.
As I played "Amazing Grace", the workers began to weep. They wept, I wept, we all wept together. When I finished, I packed up my bagpipes and started for my car. Though my head was hung low, my heart was full.
As I opened the door to my car, I heard one of the workers say,
"I never seen nothing like that before and I've been putting in septic tanks for twenty years."
