The Eulogy

February 9, 2006

Words will always fail when they are needed to give the summation of a life.

My dad’s story is familiar to the men of his generation. By all accounts, he has lived the American dream for which his generation sacrificed so much. He was born the second son of Lee and Ruth Miller. He was raised on a farm in Madison County and hated picking cotton. He had a dog named Bounce and mules Maude and Blue. He had three brothers and a sister and remained close to them throughout their lives. He felt a deep affection for his aunts, uncles, cousins, nieces and nephews. He believed that family was the most important thing in life.

He graduated from high school at a time when so many young men dropped out of school to work on the family farm. He struggled through the Great Depression, embarrassed and hurt when his family lost their farm. He joined the AL National Guard and found himself in Kodiak, Alaska when the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor. When the news reached him on the Aleutian Islands, he was eating breakfast out of his mess kit. He ran to his tent and his breakfast froze. He lived in a tent for three years on Kodiak before going to France where, as an army medic, he tended to German prisoners of war.

After the war, he returned to Ryland, and according to him, his mother worked the stew out of him, so when someone offered him a job and a car, he took it and moved to Huntsville. There he met the love of his life, Mildred Berry. They carried on a flirtation through the mail with letters addressed to the Lonely Hearts Club. He took her dancing at Smith Lake.

After they married and started a family, their entrepreneurial spirit took over and they opened their own business. They were active in their church and community. Through years of good times spent with good friends, they celebrated a life filled with love for each other. He was devastated when she died. Twenty years after the death of his beloved grandmother, Jeremy honored them both when he spoke of how his grandfather’s love for her was an inspiration for his own marriage.

To his friends, he was a lot of fun.
To his brothers, sister, nieces, nephews, and cousins, he was someone they could always count on for support.
To his customers, he was fair and honest.
To his four grandchildren and great grandson, he offered unconditional love.
To his daughter-in-law and son-in-law, he tried to be more father than father-in-law.
To his son and daughter, he was a blessing.

God doesn’t ask us to be perfect. He does, however, ask us to celebrate life. Chat Miller did as God asked.

After he kisses his wife and hugs his family and friends, I am certain that my dad is searching for Bear Bryant and yelling “Roll Tide.”