Funeral Services

A bagpiper friend of mine recently was asked by one of our local funeral directors to play at a graveside service for a homeless man.
The deceased had no family or friends, and the service was to be at a pauper's cemetery way out in our West Virgina backwoods.
The bagpiper was not familiar with the roads and soon became lost.
Arriving an hour late, neither the funeral director nor the hearse were anywhere in sight.
There only was the digging crew left, and they were taking a break to eat their lunches.
The bagpiper felt badly and apologized to the men for being late.
He then went to the graveside and looked down.
The vault lid was already in place.
Not knowing what else to do, he started to play.
The workers put down their lunches and began to gather around as the bagpiper played his heart and soul out for this man with no family and friends.
As he played "Amazing Grace", the workers wept, he wept, and they all wept together.
The bagpiper then finished, packed up his bagpipes and started for his car.
Though he was saddened that he had arrived late, he felt good about the heartfelt service that he had rendered.
Then, as he opened the door to his car, he heard one of the diggers say:
"I never seen nothin' like that before in all my born days, and I've been putting in septic tanks hereabouts for nigh unto twenty years."
The bagpiper still was lost.