Stories, Poems and Quotes

Quotes

"The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched.  They must be felt with the heart." ~Helen Keller


"Time is too slow for those who wait, too swift for those who fear, too long for those who grieve, too short for those who rejoice, but for those who love, time is eternity" ~ Unknown


"There is a sacredness in tears.  They are not the mark of weakness, but of power.  They speak more eloquently than ten thousand tongues.  They are messengers of overwhelming grief...and of unspeakable love." ~Washington Irving


"There are no goodbyes for us.  Wherever you are, you will always be in our hearts." ~Mahatma Ghandi


"What soap does for the body, tears do for the soul". ~ Jewish Proverb


"If you know someone who has lost a child, and you're afraid to mention them because you think you might make them sad by reminding them that they died--you're not reminding them. They didn't forget they died. What you're reminding them of is that you remembered that they lived, and that is a great gift." ~Elizabeth Edwards

For some moments in life there are no words.  ~David Seltzer, Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory

We acquire the strength we have overcome.  ~Ralph Waldo Emerson

Death leaves a heartache no one can heal, love leaves a memory no one can steal.  ~From a headstone in Ireland

Man, when he does not grieve, hardly exists.  ~Antonio Porchia, Voces, 1943, translated from Spanish by W.S. Merwin

Sorrow makes us all children again - destroys all differences of intellect.  The wisest know nothing.  ~Ralph Waldo Emerson

Grief is itself a medicine.  ~William Cowper, Charity

We must embrace pain and burn it as fuel for our journey.  ~Kenji Miyazawa

While we are mourning the loss of our friend, others are rejoicing to meet him behind the veil.  ~John Taylor

Life is eternal, and love is immortal,
and death is only a horizon;
and a horizon is nothing save the limit of our sight.
~Rossiter Worthington Raymond

Tears are God’s gift to us.  Our holy water.  They heal us as they flow.  ~Rita Schiano, Sweet Bitter Love, 1997, published by The Reed Edwards Company

And with them morn those angel faces smile


Which I have loved long since and lost awhile.
~John Henry Newman

When someone you love becomes a memory, the memory becomes a treasure.  ~Author Unknown

The angels are always near to those who are grieving, to whisper to them that their loved ones are safe in the hand of God.  ~Quoted in The Angels' Little Instruction Book by Eileen Elias Freeman, 1994

Unable are the loved to die.  For love is immortality.  ~Emily Dickinson

Perhaps they are not the stars, but rather openings in Heaven where the love of our lost ones pours through and shines down upon us to let us know they are happy.  ~Author Unknown

Although it's difficult today to see beyond the sorrow,
May looking back in memory help comfort you tomorrow.
~Author Unknown

For death is no more than a turning of us over from time to eternity.  ~William Penn

God is closest to those with broken hearts.  ~Jewish Saying

Sometimes, when one person is missing, the whole world seems depopulated.  ~Lamartine

Stories & Poems

The Dragonfly

Once, in a little pond, in the muddy water under the lily pads,

there lived a little water beetle in a community of water

beetles. They lived a simple and comfortable life in the pond

with few disturbances and interruptions.

Once in a while, sadness would come to the community when one of

their fellow beetles would climb the stem of a lily pad and

would never be seen again. They knew when this happened; their

friend was dead, gone forever.

Then, one day, one little water beetle felt an irresistible urge

to climb up that stem. However, he was determined that he would

not leave forever. He would come back and tell his friends what

he had found at the top.

When he reached the top and climbed out of the water onto the

surface of the lily pad, he was so tired, and the sun felt so

warm, that he decided he must take a nap. As he slept, his body

changed and when he woke up, he had turned into a beautiful

blue-tailed dragonfly with broad wings and a slender body

designed for flying.

So, fly he did! And, as he soared he saw the beauty of a whole

new world and a far superior way of life to what he had never

known existed.

Then he remembered his beetle friends and how they were thinking

by now he was dead. He wanted to go back to tell them, and

explain to them that he was now more alive than he had ever been

before. His life had been fulfilled rather than ended.

But, his new body would not go down into the water. He could

not get back to tell his friends the good news. Then he

understood that their time would come, when they, too, would

know what he now knew. So, he raised his wings and flew off

into his joyous new life!

~Author Unknown~

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I thought of you today,

but that is nothing new,

I thought about you yesterday,

and days before that too,

I think of you in silence,

I often speak your name,

Now all I have is memories,

and your picture in a fame,

Your memory is my keepsake,

with which I'll never part,

God has you in his keeping,

I have you in my heart!

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We are connected,

My child and I,

By an invisible cord,

Not seen by the eye.

It's not like the cord

That connects us 'til birth

This cord can't be seen

By any on earth.

This cord does its work

Right from the start.

It binds us together

Attached to my heart.

I know that it's there

Though no one can see

The invisible cord

From my child to me.

The strength of this cord

Man could create

It withstands the test

Can hold any weight.

And though you are gone,

Though you're not here with me,

The cord is still there

But no one can see.

It pulls at my heart

I am bruised.. I am sore,

But this cord is my lifeline

As never before.

I am thankful that God

Connects us this way

A mother and child

Death can't take away!

Author unknown

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An Ugly Pair of Shoes

I am wearing a pair of shoes.

They are ugly shoes, uncomfortable shoes.

I hate my shoes.

Each day I wear them, and each day I wish I had another pair.

Some days my shoes hurt so bad that I do not think I can take another step.

Yet, I continue to wear them.

I get funny looks wearing these shoes, they are looks of sympathy.

I can tell in others eyes that they are glad they are my shoes and not theirs.

They never talk about my shoes.

To learn how awful my shoes are might make them uncomfortable.

To truly understand these shoes you must walk in them.

But, once you put them on, you can never take them off.

I now realize that I am not the only one who wears these shoes.

There are many pairs in this world.

Some women are like me and ache daily as they try and walk in them.

Some have learned how to walk in them so they don't hurt quite as much.

Some have worn the shoes so long that days will go by before they think about how much they hurt.

No woman deserves to wear these shoes.

Yet, because of these shoes I am a stronger woman.

These shoes have given me the strength to face anything.

They have made me who I am.

I will forever walk in the shoes of a woman who has lost a child.

Author unknown

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 "I would rather have had one breath of his hair..

one kiss of his mouth..

one touch of his hand..

than an eternity without it.." 

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The mention of my child's name

May bring tears to my eyes,

But it never fails to bring music to my ears.

If you are really my friend,

Let me hear the beautiful music of his name.

It soothes my broken heart, and sings to my soul.

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If tears could build a stairway,
And memories a lane,
I'd walk right up to Heaven
And bring you home again.


~Author Unknown

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A Little While

For just a little while,

You shared my every breath.

I carried you inside of me,

Dancing out the rhythm

Of the same sweet song,

Our hearts beat in harmony.

For just a little while,

I held you deep within.

I nurtured you with body, mind and soul.

When you slipped away,

The absence of your presence

Took a wrenching and tormenting toll.

For just a little while,

Our dreams and hopes

Grew right along with you.

But they came crashing down

When you slipped away from me

And there was nothing anyone could do.

If, for a little while,

I could hold you once again,

And we could share the

rhythm of our hearts,

If we could say hello, good-bye,

Like loved ones do,

When one of them departs,

If, for a little while,

We could have precious moments

Stopped in time

I’d tell you that I love you,

And I’d share my joy

In knowing you were mine…

For just a little while.

~ Gwen Flowers ~

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Go ahead and mention my child,

The one that died, you know.

Don't worry about hurting me further.

The depth of my pain doesn't show.

Don't worry about making me cry.

I'm already crying inside.

Help me to heal by releasing the tears that I try to hide.

I'm hurt when you just keep silent,

Pretending he didn't exist.

I'd rather you mention my child,

Knowing that he has been missed.

You asked me how I was doing.

I say "pretty good" or "fine".

But healing is something ongoing.

I feel it will take a lifetime.

-       Elizabeth Dent

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Protection

I feel like I am hiding,

Deep within myself.

I’m afraid to show my feelings,

They should be put upon the shelf.

How can I grieve so deeply,

For a soul that wasn’t here.

I think that others feel this way,

How wrong they are, my dear.

I have to smile

And say I’m fine,

When most days I am not.

The pain inside is dimming some,

The light is all I’ve got.

Protecting your memory,

Is a force so deep,

That I cannot explain.

They must know that you were here

And I can’t escape the pain.

I’m grateful for those who honor you

By mentioning your name.

You were here and you are mine,

I love you all the same.

We will always remember…xo

Mommy (Leanna) - February 2009

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My Child

You changed me.

You changed who I am,

You changed who I will be

I am forever changed because of you.

You’ve taught me that love has no boundries

You;ve taught me that there is more to life than what I know

You’ve taught me to really truly count my blessings.

You’ve taught me the strength of a bond between a mother and a child.

Life is unpredictable

Life is about the love you share, and the people you share it with

Life isn’t easy and there is pain beyond measure

But my life must continue, even though your life is gone.

I must continue, so that I can change the lives of others

the way you have forever changed me.

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A Man in Grief


It must be difficult


To be a man in grief,


Since “men don’t cry” and “men are strong”


No tears can bring relief.

It must be very difficult


To stand up to the test


And field calls and visitors


So she can get some rest.

They always ask if she’s doing all right


And what she’s going through,


But seldom take his hand and ask,


“My friend, but how are you?”.


He hears her crying in the night


and thinks his heart will break.


He dries her tears and comforts her,


But stays strong for her sake.

It must be very difficult


To start each day anew


And try to be brave~


He lost his baby too.

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Good-night! good-night! as we so oft have said

Beneath this roof at midnight, in the days

That are no more, and shall no more return.

Thou hast but taken up thy lamp and gone to bed;

I stay a little longer, as one stays

To cover up the embers that still burn.

~Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

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When he shall die

Take him and cut him out in little stars

And he will make the face of heav'n so fine

That all the world will be in love with night

And pay no worship to the garish sun.

~William Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet

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