Librarian Blues❖Troy Barnes

amazing grace- chapter 15

"I can't believe it. She's gone," Troy mumbled, sidestepping his way between the church pews to find a seat. He stared at the urn up front on a podium, surrounded by all of Maisy's favorite flowers.

The study group shuffled in beside him, taking up a pew together. They watched as her family filed in and sat on the front row, her parents already crying.

The chapel was cold. To Troy, everything had been cold. Everything had been slow since Maisy's death was announced by the Dean. He had just assumed that she hadn't called him back because of their fight. Not because of the accident.

They sat and listened to the soft piano music playing in the background, no one making a noise as they waited for the preacher to arrive. The study group shared brief glances with each other as an older gentleman walked to the front of the room.

"Thank you all on behalf of Maisy's family, and Greendale Funeral Home, for being here today. If you would take a moment to please silence your cellphones out of respect, the service will begin shortly," the man said, quickly darting out of the chapel.

A young woman, no older than thirty, made her way to the pulpit.

"Hello. My name is Genevieve. I'm one of Maisy's aunts. I was asked to officiate her funeral today," her voice cracked and she looked down, wiping tears away from her face. "That's not something I ever thought I was going to say."

Genevieve looked over the crowd, sniffling as she took in everyone's faces.

"Thank you all for being here today. We knew Maisy loved her friends and family, but we didn't think this many people would come. We hadn't realized the amount of people who cared for her."

Annie reached over, squeezing Troy's hands. He was trying to hide it, but the tears welling up in his eyes were evident.

"Maisy loved a lot of things in life. Baking, flowers, and everything literature related. I like to think that in every book I'll read from here on out, I'll be able to find a piece of her in them. She'll live on through the words of authors and the meaning we find in what they've written."

Maisy's father reached around her mother, pulling her in close. He gave her a kiss on top of her head, whispering that everything would be okay.

"One of Maisy's favorite authors was JRR Tolkien. This quote is one I think she'd want us all to hear today. 'I will not say: do not weep; for not all tears are an evil.' I think that really sums up how Maisy would want us all to feel. She understood the power in tears, the power in feeling your emotions. Another thing she loved was music. Please take a moment to listen to one of her favorite hymns with us."

Genevieve motioned to the funeral director, who was peeking in through a window on the door to the chapel. A few seconds later, a bagpipe cover of Amazing Grace began playing.

As everyone listened, Britta's ears began to recognize a familiar undertone to the song.

"Troy," Britta whispered, getting his attention.

"What?" he asked, trying not to be loud.

"Did she like Dropkick Murphys? This is their cover." Britta spit out frantically.

As her last word came out of her lips, heavy metal music began accompanying the bagpipes. It was as if time froze, and everyone began to look at each other, their faces twisted in confusion. All eyes then turned to her parents.

Maisy's parents looked at each other, their grief turning to anger as they stood up to go speak to the funeral director.

"God dammit, they're playing the wrong song," her father mumbled as they stomped down the aisle. A screaming match between them and the funeral director could be heard through the door they slammed behind them.

After a few moments they came back in, apologizing as they sat down. They looked at Genevieve, motioning for her to go back up to continue speaking.

"Well, that was not planned. Sorry, that threw me for a bit of a loop. I'm sure Maisy is laughing, wherever she is. She always had a way of making a bad situation into the best it could be. It's one of the many things I loved about her. If anyone has any stories they would like to share, we have a few minutes set aside for you to do so."

Genevieve walked away, sitting down in her designated chair. And everyone waited.

No one wanted to go up. It's not that they didn't have any stories to share – it's that no one wanted to be the first person to go up.

"Hi, my name is Bill. Maisy always called me Spray Cheese Bill, but the origin of that is a tale for another day. I wanted to say that Maisy helped me start taking my love for cooking seriously. If it wasn't for her, I never would have switched to a culinary degree. I'll always be thankful for that."

"I'm Jess, but most of you know that. I am, or I guess was, Maisy's best friend. She was one of the most lovely people I'd ever met. I will never forgive myself for letting her drive home the day after my wedding. I just hope one day, you can forgive me," Jess looked over to Maisy's parents, tears streaming down her face. "Maisy was one of a kind, and the world has truly lost someone amazing."

Jeff looked over at Troy, nodding towards the pulpit. Troy shook his head no, and they went back and forth for a moment while a few other people got up to speak. Eventually, Annie pushed Troy out of his seat.

"Uh, hey. I'm Troy. I was Maisy's boyfriend," he choked out. He paused for a moment, gripping the sides of the pulpit to steady himself.

"Maisy was more than just the librarian at Greendale. More than just the kind hearted person who loved books we've made her out to be today. She made life fun. She made everything shine brighter, and I'll never forget how much she means to me. And I don't mean to say meant, I mean to say means. Because even with her not here, I will always feel like a part of her was with me."