Category: Death

All items related to the ending of a life

Remember, Remember

Jeanne 1 Comment

I just finished a book, “The Time Keeper” by Mitch Albom. Since I have always been intriqued by ‘memories’, this book was also intriguing. It dealt with ‘time’. One quote from the book:

“You marked the minutes,” the old man said, “But did you use them wisely? To be still? To cherish? To be grateful? To lift and be lifted?”

Think of each moment as a grain of sand in the giant hourglass of our lives, and we hold that one grain right now. All the sand above and all the sand beneath–the past and future cannot be dealt with right now. Only one grain at a time.

Make memories, for that is what life is made of. Spend time with those you love while you have the time.

I remember precious moments in the past that give the present hope and light.. I love to collect memories and wish I could add to my collection every day. Days when I fail to do this are barren, and if there are too many ‘barrens’ in a row, life begins to feel meaningless.

We have nothing to remember if we do not savor life now. Memories are the acts of the present that bear fruit in the future.

Remember! Remember! from whence we’ve come, on trails of glory, from Thy Holy Son.
To prove on earth, our own true worth, This is our purpose, while here on earth.
Remember! Remember! to turn to Christ, so we may obtain eternal life.
Remember! Remember! The Holy Ghost, that He may guide us through Satan’s host.

Remember! Remember! Without our Lord, we could not follow His sacred word.
Nor understand His one true way, to lead us home to God one day.
Remember! Remember! His one true church that teaches us to pray, seek and search.

Remember to seek Christ when we are weak, with humble heart, sincere and meek.
The Holy Spirit will lift our soul, and help us know which way to go.
Remember! Remember! without God’s Son, we cannot return to the Holy One.

Remember! Remember! We have chosen Christ to guide us through earth’s trials to eternal life.
We need Thee, Lord, every hour and day; Thou art the light, the truth, the way.
Remember! Remember! To fast, search, serve, seek and pray,
And we will be lifted home to live and serve in our Father’s perfect eternal love one fine day.

Remember, Remember, Remember…….

http://www.lds.org/blog/think-to-thank?cid=HP_WE_1-11-2017_dOCS_fBLOG_xLIDyL1-A_&lang=eng

Happy Autumn

Jeanne 1 Comment

Several years ago I penned a note to my grown children. I would like to quote pieces of it here: “I was walking to work tonight and noticed a lot of Halloween decorations..blow-up stuff, etc. and thought about how I liked them. They are ‘comfort’ things, like comfort foods: foods you eat because they trigger an emotional good feeling. Well, these decorations did that too. They made me feel happy and warm, and when I thought about why they did this, I realized that they open up memories that were good ones, like past Halloweens when you kids would dress up, and how excited you were. Carving pumpkins. Decorating the yard and house. Crispy fall leaves and cooler darker nights.

I suppose it’s not all that stuff that I really love. It’s the feelings that were associated with those activities. They were times when we were all happy and excited, and we were together and shared an experience that made us feel good, safe, and loved. Also, Halloween is the gateway for the holiday season: Thanksgiving and Christmas, which also have their own magic. I am warmed and softened as those memories fill up my mind. All these things make up what we really are…down to the core…stuff you can’t change…things that ‘override’ everything else. Things usually hidden away that only come into our conscious mind when we see something like a pumpkin, or a Christmas tree. Strange, isn’t it? That such simple stuff can be so powerful. I hope you have some good memories that pop up every now and again..the kind of memories that bring tears to your eyes, hope in your heart, and a love that fills you to overflowing. If you do, then all those things we did together were truly great and remarkable. Take the time to pause and drink in the season!”

This piece was especially appealing to me because I am tired to the bones of this long hot summer. Perhaps if I put out the fall decorations, summer will accept the fact that it’s days are numbered, and perhaps we will get those cool nights!

Wishing things were different is common to all of us, I suppose. Which brings me into thoughts of wanting to change the unpleasant, the sad, the terrible, and the painful. There is much of that in the world, and I am reminded of the Serenity Prayer: “God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, courage to change the things I can, and wisdom to know the difference.”

I believe that a loving Heavenly Father sent us here to learn and grow, and that we cannot effectively do that without resistance, pain, perplexities, sorrow, etc. But He has given us a light. It’s true that comfort, peace, and guidance are available to all of us who learn to humbly come unto Christ. See lds.org and type “For God So Loved The World” in the search bar, and view the video.

http://www.lds.org/media-library/video/2011-10-042-for-god-so-loved-the-world?cid=HP_FR_1-9-2017_dPFD_fMLIB_xLIDyL1-C_&lang=eng

John 16:33 “These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.”

Adversity

Jeanne 1 Comment

Adversity can build the muscles of each troubled soul.
Without opposition, how can we choose to grow?
We learn through pain and sorrow to have more empathy.
Persecution can turn us to prayer and deeper charity.

A redwood tree grows strong and tall, but it’s roots don’t grow so deep.
Against the wind-tossed storms of life, one lone tree finds little peace.
But as they grow together, as their roots intertwine,
No gale that blows can topple those giant redwood pine.

We choose not to stand alone through our adversity.
We turn unto our loving God and friends and family.
We pray for help and plead for strength that we may overcome,
That through our trial, we may learn true wisdom from God’s Son.

Hate, anger and bitterness cause cankers on ones’ soul.
Repentance, forgiveness and patience help our inner peace to grow.
Adversity can be good or bad, it’s up to us to choose
To grow in understanding, or let Satan light our fuse.

We choose to use adversity to humble us to God,
To strive for help through prayer and hold fast the iron rod.
We gain strength from friends and family as we let our roots entwine.
Together with Christ’s true church, adversity becomes a tool to strengthen each heart and mind.

Real faith is something that I believe takes most of us a lifetime to acquire, if we ever do at all. I find myself in the same spot of struggling with reconciling God’s will for me, and my own plans and desires. I can have faith if I feel that God will grant me my desire, but my heart tells me that isn’t real faith, that’s just expecting God to fill our orders, and that is assuming that we always know best…The video clip in the link below addresses that very problem very well, and challenges me to ask myself, “Does it really matter?”

There is a scripture in Ether 12:27 in the Book of Mormon that is quoted in the video clip. What are some of your thoughts about faith, humility and adversity?

https://www.lds.org/media-library/video/topics/adversity?lang=eng&_r=1

The Divers

Jeanne 1 Comment

A couple of weeks ago I attended the funeral for my Aunt, who was the last of all my Aunts and Uncles, and it seemed like a chapter was closing. My own mortality seemed a little too close for comfort. For those of us who have finished our era of child raising, time seems to have passed alarmingly quickly. Although this can certainly be quite depressing, it also helps us to understand the importance of enjoying the present journey…not fretting about what we did or didn’t do in the past, and not being consumed with worry over what might lie ahead. My Aunt was exemplary in demonstrating the development of talents and sharing them with others. Bit by bit, she influenced many in a positive way. Her poetry has been a catalyst to me with my own writing, and especially this poem:

The would-be divers slowly climb the steps to the top
The platform
High and intimidating, bids them “Stop!”
And yet, their feet drive to the brink
And off they go,
No time to think!

We watch below and shake our heads.
This, we will never do, we said.
Unaware that we are in the line
Pressing forward all the time.

The oldest ones have gone before
One by one,
Now in our past.
Occasionally a youthful soul
Pushed through the line.
We watched, aghast.

Our steps for now are slow and gay.
We take our time.
We sing and play,
Unaware that our steady steps
Lead us higher every day,
Until, at last, we reach the top.

How the decades fled!
We are now atop.
Some feel peace, and some feel dread.
All surprised
How short the time
From bottom to the top,
A few short years, just a lifetime,
So much shorter than we thought.

Our time will come when toes grip the rim.
Our teeth and hands are clenched,
And we are shoved or nudged,
First flying, and then drenched.

Be assured, our time is coming.
Ignore the pace…the distant drumming,
Be with those who now surround us,
Else we miss the purpose of the climb.

Only as we enjoy the journey,
Will the diving be sublime!

This link is http://www.lds.org/media-library/video/feature-films/2016-10-0002-mans-search-for-happiness-1986?lang=eng a remake of my favorite short video when I was a child. I deals very effectively with the issue of “time”.

A New Year

Jeanne 2 Comments

On January 1st, I’m usually thinking of how I ought to improve myself. Well, today I feel sad and concerned for a number of individuals in my neighborhood who have serious health problems right now. One dear sweet young lady died last night. another lingers on the brink. Another young lady continues a valiant battle with cancer. Another friend is recovering from a serious accident that will take months to recover from. There’s a heart problem, a shoulder problem, and bowel problems. And so I’m feeling sad today and turned to a journal entry on Memorial Day that expresses my sadness, but also opens the windows of sunshine. I’d like to share it with you. It is written about my Dad.

“I visited your grave today…green grass, the monument, your name, the dates–reminders of a time when you were here. I can visualize your face, and hear your voice. I remember many things: places, holidays, road trips, meals, good times and bad times. I feel the emptiness of your absence and the sadness in it’s wake.

The pain and loss, I think, would be too much to bear, if I thought at all that you yourself really lay beneath the ground. But, no, I do not feel, in fact, indeed, I know, you still live on, the very same, just beyond somewhere. I do not need to see or hear, or even know the place. I only know you live again and we will be together–another place, another time.

I am consoled. I feel hope and rejoice in the reality of a plan that allows me the chance to associate with those I love so much forever, only to be tested with a brief separation that we call death, but is, in reality, just a mysterious journey to an unknown land.

I will not disappoint you. I will not waste time pining about the past and let your absence disable me. I know you would want me to care for others like you cared for us, and to create an existence with an abundance of love and laughter, hope and good things. And so I will revel in the associations I have now. Each minute, each encounter and event is a sacred opportunity and chance to feel and share love, like you gave to me, with those I love her and now.

So Memorial Day means to remember all those whose graves we visit, and to honor them by building timeless, loving memories with my special family I am so fortunate to share my time and space with.

Two Worn Out Shoes

Jeanne 1 Comment

Well, from the number of comments we’ve received, I assume that no one is reading. If I’m wrong, please send a comment. Hello, out there? Anyway, I’ve been thinking about how nice it is to have a buddy. Bob is my buddy. I found this poem I penned about 10 years ago. Read it and tell me about your buddy.

You and me, two worn out shoes
Treks and trips, we’ve had a few,
And when times come I need to choose,
Above all else, I choose you.

High fashion never was our lot.
We scrimped and saved and never bought
The things most other people sought.
Yet we were rich, or so we thought.

We worked and sweat to build a home.
Your Uncle Bob–Farm Home Loan.
Year after year, stone upon stone,
A place where all would love to come.

Memories along the way
Explored new roads day after day.
Some places near, some far away.
We made good times at each new stay.

Our lives, they changed once Aaron came.
New days ahead, and yet the same.
Then Val and Eve joined in the game.
Each brought us joy and also pain.

From coast to coast, across the land
You’ve basked with me in forests grand.
And walked along the shores of sand.
In heaven too, you’ll have my hand!

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Hate

Jeanne Leave a comment

Yesterday, being 9/11, my thoughts turned to the terrorist events of that day 15 years ago. I found that I have a difficult time understanding the hate that is so evident in our world today. The lack of compassion. The disregard for life. It saddens me to know of all the sadness brought into the lives of so many families. I love the words so often spoke by our savior to love one another.

Hate is a destroyer of all we hold most dear.
Forgiveness is the healing balm that overcomes hate and fear.

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A Love Poem

Jeanne 1 Comment

julie & JeanneSometimes I think it’s just not fair,

That I am here and you are there.

The way I’d like the day to be,

Is always have you here with me.

Then I could hug you all the day,

And always have the chance to say,

I Love You.

I Recall A Mother’s Day

Jeanne 4 Comments

I recall a Mother’s Day,
Seems ages past though scarcely ten,
When silence echoed in the quiet nursery,
Void of any cry or call for Mama.
And any infant I should see, was not my own,
Who recently had come and quickly gone.

The long-stemmed rose–the gift,
A token of Motherhood
Was mockery to my being
Who aspired to the grandest height of all–Mother.

But lo, the years produced the child my heart desired.
And now I see within the rosebush
The new-formed dewy buds,
And overlook the thorn
That seemed so sharp and painful
On other days like this.

With house and arms and thoughts no longer empty,
There is a deluge of the once longed for dependent cries of “Mama!”

And now the garden rose I see as me,
With room to grow and flourish,
And send its roots deep into the soil
To stand amid the worldly blasts,
And turn toward the sun
To drink the heaven-sent strength
To make me equal to the title–Mama.

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When Death Calls

Jeanne 2 Comments

Last week a woman from our neighborhood died in a pedestrian accident. It seems that Death is one of those somber events that causes us to search deeply to know and understand. In response to this event, we penned this poem:

WHEN DEATH CALLS

When death calls a loved one beyond this mortal veil
Is it somewhat like a prisoner, who is released from jail?
Or like a caterpillar chrysalis, who becomes a butterfly?
Is death that great adventure beyond the human eye?

We see our Great Spirit’s promise on all land, sky, and in sea
From the smallest living thing, to the tallest living tree
From wood that changes into smoke and flows up in the sky
To the rebirth of the forests as spring gladdens heart and eye.

When a death takes a loved one, great sorrow fills our heart.
We must mourn with those who mourn; in this way, we do our part.
The Master of creation loves and cares for every soul
From each child held in death’s sleep, to us who live and grow.

From each new dawn unto every eve, hope blooms eternally.
We each have senses beyond our sight, where hope and faith grow free.
May we have eyes to see, ears to hear, and a heart to understand
Resurrection’s miracles, for each child in God’s wondrous plan.

From the Son unto this glorious earth, light flows eternally
Through the Father, Son and Holy Ghost, we can fly forever free.

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What are some of your thoughts?