It's a poignant scene: the gathering place of mourners.
In our culture, that scene is usually played out in a funeral home, a chapel, a sanctuary, or at the graveside. In that day, however, it most often took place in the home of the deceased. And the body was there, too, similar to our visitations with open caskets; though without some of the cosmetic advantages.
So it is that the grieving friends of Tabitha are gathered together in her home. She must have died rather recently, for she hasn't been buried yet. Instead, she is upstairs; her corpse laid out on her bed.
As the sad and surprising word spreads through town, more of her many admirers arrive at the house. The initial conversations at the door are all essentially the same. "I just heard the news." "I can't believe it!" "Ho…