A unique memorial service

A few weeks ago, the brother of a very dear family friend ended his own life very tragically. I didn't really know the deceased, having only met him once or twice in my lifetime, but his surviving brother is someone I have known for decades through my younger sister. Today was the memorial service for our friend's brother, who practiced Zen Buddhism and Kirtan Yoga, so the service, held in the historic St. Colman Roman Catholic Church on the west side of Cleveland, was a unique blend of song, reminiscence, chant and ceremony. It seemed a tad incongruous that we'd be holding such an eastern oriented ceremony in a Catholic Church, but apparently, the deceased had a lot to do with saving it from closing, so it seemed appropriate to hold it in a place of such significance. The memorial service consisted of some beloved old folk songs like "If I Had a Hammer" by Pete Seeger, "I'll Fly Away", an old folk song, and a bunch of different chants from the Kirtan Yoga and Zen Buddhist traditions. In between all this were remembrances from friends of the deceased as well as a photo remembrance by our friend. The final part of the service was a Buddhist ceremony of chant accompanied by a bell and a drum, very mystical and fascinating, followed by a release of the soul of the deceased, permission to ascend from this earth to the Great Beyond and whatever journey lies ahead. After that was the playing of a recording of "I'll Fly Away", very appropriate as the soul of the deceased was given permission to do just that, fly away now, go on to the next part of your journey. I hope that this individual, who was obviously tortured enough in mind to take his own life, is at last at peace and is on his way now to whatever lies ahead on his journey. I hope he also knows how many people loved him and how many lives he touched and changed. Your journey here on earth is done. Fly away now and be at peace wherever you may go next.