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To Be
Their Own
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(719) 564-0280
 

"We must accept finite disappointment.  But, we must never lose infinite HOPE."  -  Martin Luther King, Jr.

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"Hope" is the thing
with feathers that perches in the soul
and sings the tune without words
and never stops - at all.  ~ Emily Dickinson

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"The only real failure is the failure to grow from what we go through." --adapted from The Gift of Change

 

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Lord Make me an instrument of Thy peace.
Where there is hatred le me so love;
Where there is injury pardon;
Where there is doubt, faith;
Where there is despair, hope;
Where there is darkness, light;
Where there is sadness, joy.

O Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek
To be consoled as to console;
To be understood as to understand;
To be loved as to love:
For it is in giving that we receive;
It is in pardoning that we are pardoned;
It is in dying that we are born to eternal life.

Exposition of 1 Corinthians 13:1-13
- St. Francis of Assisi

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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
1840 - 1918

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Although you cannot see me
Don't believe that I am gone
My spirit still remains
To help you carry on.

Lift your hands to Heaven
And that glimpse of light you see
May be the hope you're seeking
Found inside of me.

A life may wane and wither
And eventually fade from view
The energy transforms to light
Still to be sensed by you.

Don't assume I cannot see you
Just because you can't see me
I'm standing right beside you
Where I always want to be.

"In Memory of Marella"
Written by her friend, Linda

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Native American Prayer

I give you this one thought to keep  ---
I am with you still ---I do not sleep.
I am a thousand winds that blow,
I am the diamond glints on snow,
I am the sunlight on ripened grain,
I am the gentle autumn rain.
When you awaken in the morning's hush,
I am the swift, uplifting rush
of quiet birds in circled flight.
I am the soft stars that shine at night.
Do not think of me as gone ---
I am with you still --- in each new dawn.

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Survivor Psalm  http://www.giftfromwithin.org/html/poems.html

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I'll lend you for a little time a child of mine, He said.
For you to love while he lives, and mourn when he is dead.
It may be six or seven years, or twenty two or three.
But will you, till I call him back, take care of him for me?
He'll bring his charms to gladden you, and shall his stay be brief,
You'll have his lovely memories as solace for your grief.
I cannot promise he will stay, since all from earth return,
But there are lessons taught down there I want this child to learn.
I've looked the wide world over in my search for teachers true,
And from the throngs that crowd life's lanes, I have selected you.
How will you give him all your love, nor think the labor vain,
Nor hate me when I come to call, to take him back again.
I fancied that I heard them say, Dear Lord, thy will be done.
For all the joy thy child shall bring, the risk of grief will run.
We'll shelter him with tenderness, we'll love him while we may,
And for the happiness we've known, will ever grateful stay.
But shall the Angels call for him much sooner than we planned,
We'll brave the bitter grief that comes and try to understand.

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Father Charles Shelby
St. Mary's Seminary, Missouri

                         Comfort Those Who Mourn

" So many people imagine that death cruelly separates us from our loved ones.  Even pious people are led to believe this great and sad mistake.  When our loved ones die, they do not leave us.  They remain.  They do not go to some dark and distant place.  They simply begin their eternity.  We do not see them because we are still in the darkness of the world.  But their spiritual eyes, filled with the light of heaven, are always watching us as they wait for the day when we shall share their perfect joy.  We are all born for heaven and one by one we end this life of tears to begin our life of love in endless happiness.

I have often reflected upon this beautiful truth and found it the greatest and surest comfort in time of mourning.  A firm faith in the real and continual presence of our loved ones has brought the conviction and consolation that death has not destroyed them, nor carried them away. Rather it has given them life!  A life with power to know fully and to love perfectly.  With this new life and new power our loved ones are always present to us, knowing and loving us more than ever before.

The tears that dampen eyes in time of mourning are tears of home-sickness, tears of longing for our loved ones.  But it is we who are away from home, not they.  Death has been for them a doorway to an eternal home.  And only because this heavenly home is invisible to our worldly eyes, we cannot see them so near us.  Yet, they are with us, lovingly and tenderly waiting for the day when we, too, will enter the doorway of our eternal home.

No, death is not a separation.  It is a preparation for eternal union with those we love, in the peace and joy of heaven. " 

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Fred's Angel
By Fred's 13 yr. old granddaughter Catherine

As a kid you never knew love,
Then an angel came down from up above.
She came down to meet and greet,
And you saw how her smile was oh so sweet.

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Many people will walk in and out of your life,
But only true friends will leave footprints in your heart.

To handle yourself, use your head
To handle others, use your heart.

Anger is only one letter short of danger.
If someone betrays you once, it is his fault.
If he betrays you twice, it is your fault.

Great minds discuss ideas;
Average minds discuss events;
Small minds discuss people.

He who loses money, loses much;
He, who loses a friend, loses much more;
He, who loses faith, loses all.

Beautiful young people are accidents of nature,
But beautiful old people are works of art.

Learn from the mistakes of others.
You can't live long enough to make them all yourself.

Friends, you and me....
You brought another friend...
And then there were 3...
We started our group...
Our circle of friends...
And like that circle...
There is no beginning or end...
Yesterday is history.
Tomorrow is mystery.
Today is a gift.

-Eleanor Roosevelt

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"For Such A Time As This"

Why did I walk through the desert
Why was I forced to my knees
Why did the sun parch and dry me
As I walked through the desert of defeat
Then came the clouds and the rain fell
I thought that I'd never make it through the night
But God gave me the answer when I prayed with you
He let me see the dark to hold the light

(Chorus)

And I can kneel with a brother who is bearing a burden
And say I know just what you're going through
I can pray with a sister in the midst of the sorrow
And say I know because I've been there too
I can put my arms around someone who is down
And tell them to have faith and confidence
What in pain I could not see I now fully believe
God prepared me for Such A Time As This

Now you may be praying for rescue
You are facing temptation and trial
Struggles are endlessly present
But the purpose is some where in God's time
So just keep on walking the good road
The night leads to a stronger and wiser day
And when you're asked the reason for the path you have trod
You'll know without a doubt and you can say

(Chorus) - 2x - End Without (As This)

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"The only real mistake is one from which we learn nothing."
- John Powell 
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Merry Christmas From Heaven

I still hear the songs
I still see the lights
I still feel your love
on cold wintery nights

I still share your hopes
and all of your cares
I'll even remind you
to please say your prayers

I just want to tell you
you still make me proud
You stand head and shoulders
above all the crowd

Keep trying each moment 
to stay in His grace
I came here before you
to help set your place

You don't have to be
perfect all of the time
He forgives you the slip
If you continue to climb

To my family and friends
please be thankful today
I'm still close beside you
In a new special way

I love you all dearly
now don't shed a tear
Cause I'm spending my
Christmas with Jesus this year

~ John Wm. Mooney, Jr.

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" We are all here to be of service to one another...to grace one another's lives with offerings of our skills and talents, our time and energy, our resources, and our love..." ~  Caroline Joy Adams

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