The funeral was elaborate and grand as one would expect for a man of such stature in the Thomasville community. The line for visitation at the funeral home extended out of the building and down the sidewalk of Main Street. What appeared to be the entire county showed up for the hero’s send-off. It was only fitting that the Colonel be laid to rest in his air calvary dress uniform. He looked every bit the great man of stature that he truly was as he lay in the flag-draped casket. Gran saw to every detail of the event. Her husband deserved the pomp and circumstance of a great statesman and she ensured that he got it. It was her desire that the Colonel be buried at Arlington National Cemetery among the other war heroes, but it was the Colonel’s request that his final resting place be at the peak of Flowers’ Mountain.
Tiffany gripped Seven’s hand as they stood at the top of the hill that had created the scar on his right cheek. She became familiar with the place and the people in the past few months. Gran immediately approved of her when she saw the care and comfort that the young woman provided for her grandson in the wake of the crash that took his leg. She accepted Tiffany as family and quickly mounted a full assault for Seven to make the move legal and documented. Tiffany respected and admired Patty, whom she also referred to with the family moniker of Gran. She saw the way the old lady ruled the family and commanded respect. She felt comfortable and relaxed in the Flowers home. Tiffany only came to know the Colonel in his vegetative state, but she spent many afternoons on the front porch with the man and his grandson listening to dialogues of war. She knew Jessup Flowers as Seven knew him, a hero and a giant.
The funeral event of Colonel Jessup Flowers was about a week in length, slightly longer than traditional southern protocol, but the passing of the Colonel warranted it. In the days prior to the service the farmhouse was bombarded with friends and community officials bringing pots of home-