"Saint FOX"
Summer Solstice 2003

There is nothing that can beat a good Scottish/Celtic Pagan send off to the OtherSide. Bagpipes and Celtic music, bards telling stories and beautiful lasses singing songs. The only thing that would have made it better, and pleased Fox to no end, would have been if we could have done the cremation ourselves in a giant funeral pyre. I have been to way to many funerals; one year I went to a funeral every month when my gay friends dropped like flies to the plague of AIDS. Yet, I have never seen such a site as I witnessed tonight, Death O' thy Sting moves us to learn to LIVE. The post before I left for the service was all about what I was getting personally from Fox's passing over the veil to the OtherSide, the lesson of learning to live this life more fully in each moment.
His Beautiful wife and best friend Mother Owl Rain stood before us and admonished us all to this lesson. I watched through my own tears as Giant Celtic Men heaved with sobs that I could not stand to see, there definitely was not a dry eye in the house. The Funeral home allowed an altar to be erected with full Scottish regalia, swords and all, it was very beautiful, and the pictures of Fox as a child had everyone in stitches laughing,smiling,crying, he was a clown at times.One of His brothers told me that he hated that the picture of Fox as a child tied to a tree was not there, I asked, "Tied to a tree?" "yeah, at the river, or lake we had to always tie him to a tree so he wouldn't go and drown himself,,, he loved water, but couldn't swim." We laughed until we cried, again.
The music drifted in pulling everyone's heart to pieces: Loreena McKennitt was one of Fox's favorites,,,
""When the Moon on a cloud cast night
Shone above the tree top's height
You sang me of some distant past
that made my heart beat strong and fast
Now I know I'm home at last............................................I'll be a moonsbreath from your side"
Everyone got up and said something, and when I went up I looked around the room to see many old friends who have grown distant. I told them that we needed to head Mother Rain's words, and now all anger, jealosy and pettiness must be put behind us. Life is too short, and Good men are gone from us way too soon, so we must start afresh RIGHT NOW, for that is all we have, ,,,, and I looked in the eyes of some who might not have been to happy to see me and they looked back crying, because we all knew that the Death of our dear friend was our opportunity to renew ourselves. Fox had done in death what no one was able to do before and put to rest petty angers and gave us all the ability to rise up and reconcile. The Charlotte Pagan Community and the Tribe will never be the same,,, it will be better than ever we could dream.
Then to break the mood, I said that I will miss him most because he was the only Straight man I knew who would Kiss me right on the lips. Everyone laughed, and afterwards I got a kiss from a couple of Big Butch Celtic Straight men,,,, RIGHT ON THE LIPS!!! GOD I LOVE PAGANS!!!!
The funeral home offered to pack everything up ,,, to get our asses out of there,, so where do we go but to Fox's favorite Pub to drink a toast, and another and another,,, till they wanted to run us out of there!!!
The funniest thing of the whole night came out of the lips of his sweet wife Rain. We were getting our first drink of the night, and I mentioned my hard luck in finding a job. Serious as she could be she looked at me and said.... " I know somebody that has a vacancy that they need to fill." "Really? '' stupid me falling into it thick,,,, "Ekcards" and she burst out laughing her ass off. "Fox made me say it!!!" "He whispered it in my ear!!" We all just howled with laughter,That was were Fox worked, and it was true to form something that Fox would have said ,,, hell he did... and we laughed and we laughed and we laughed,,, just like Fox would have wanted us all to do.
Oh, and by the way,, we bypassed all the rigamaroll that the papacy has to go through and went ahead and declared Fox a saint. Saint Fox, he will be working overtime for the next week on a huge assortment of Pagan requests, but should be available by All Saint's Day. He made my request immediate and one of my Pagan friends Makar (James is birthname) came up and said, "Hear you need a roomie?"
So, Saint Fox is not slow like alot of those other saints,,, and of course is nondenominational,, specializing in the Pagan realm,,, but damn he will be making for a fine saint,, Thanks, I will be taking care of Rain,, promise. Pinky(Rain) and the Brain(me?) have plans to take over the world..... so watch out everyone,,, we have Saint Fox on our side.
One more thing I want to post is the poem called the Chieftains--'A Stor mo chroi,' means Treasure of my Heart, and the word 'aroon' means either treasure or darling. Brian O'Higgins wrote this and it is Irish, but Rain dedicated this to him, it is beautiful when sung.

A Stór Mo Chroí, when you're far away
Far from the land you'll be leaving,
It's many a time by night and by day
That your heart will be sorely grieving.
For the stranger's land may be bright and fair,
And rich in its treasures golden.
But you'll pine, I know, for the long, long ago
And the love that is never olden.

A Stór Mo Chroí, in the stranger's land
There is plenty of wealth and wailing.
Whilst gems adorn the great and the grand
There are faces with hunger pailing.
Though the road is toilsome, and hard to tread
And the lights of their cities will blind you.
Won't you turn a stór to Erin's shore
And the ones that you're leaving behind you.

A Stór Mo Chroí, when the evening's mist
Over mountain and sea is falling,
won't you turn away from the throng
And maybe you'll hear me calling.
For the sound of a voice that is surely missed
For somebody's quick returning.
A ruin, a ruin, oh won't you come back soon
To the ones who will always love you.