As a bagpiper, I play many gigs. Recently I was asked by a funeral director to play at a graveside service for a homeless man. He had no family or friends, so the service was to be at a pauper’s cemetery in the middle of nowhere.
As I was not familiar with the area, I got lost on the way there. When I finally arrived, an hour late and I noticed the undertaker had evidently gone and the hearse was nowhere in sight - only the diggers and crew were still there, and they were eating lunch.
Feeling very bad, I apologised to the men for being late and made my way to the grave-side. I looked down and the vault lid was already in place and, not knowing what else to do, I started to play.
The workers put down their lunches and began to gather around. I played out my heart and soul for this man with no family and friends. I played for this homeless man like I’d never played before.
When I started to play ‘Amazing Grace,’ the workers began to weep. They wept, I wept, we all wept together. When I finished I packed up my bagpipes and started for the car. Though my head hung low, my heart was full.
As I opened the door to my car, I heard one of the workers say, “I never seen anything like that before and I’ve been putting in septic tanks for twenty years".