Remembering Papa

With losing great-grandfather Papa this spring, Neela has had many questions and theories about dying and death. She asks questions about what dies and what doesn't (flowers die, televisions don't really die, birds die, cars don't).  And she reminds me about how she loves and misses Papa. 

When talking and preparing for the funeral we discussed how people would dress in dark colours, there would be prayers and singing, and about how dad and the uncles would be carrying a big box called a coffin. Of course she asked what was in the box, and when I explained that it was Papa's body. Neela said, "He forgot to take it with him when he died?" I told her that people don't take their bodies with them, and reminded her of the dead bird's body that we had found. She thought about it for a while, then asked "Is he naked in there?"