Hillbilly Elegy

funeral in Jackson—Uncle Jimmy and
his kids, our extended family and
friends, and all of the Blanton men who
were still kicking. It occurred to me as I
saw these titans of my family that, for the
first eleven or so years of my life, I saw
them during happy times—family
reunions and holidays or lazy summers
and long weekends—and in the two most
recent years I’d seen them only at
funerals.
At Papaw’s funeral, as at other
hillbilly funerals I’ve witnessed, the
preacher invited everyone to stand up
and say a few words about the deceased.
As I sat next to Uncle Jimmy in the pew,
I sobbed throughout the hour-long