My Mom

I wanted to thank all of you for the cards, flowers, prayers, etc. My heart is broken after the loss of my mother and best friend, but the support of family and friends has been such a great comfort. Thank you.

This is a poem my sister read at my mom's memorial. It touched me deeply and I think it describes how I feel so well. I thought I would share it with you as well as what I read at the service.

This is what I want to say:
You are my sun, my moon, every star in the sky.
My east, my west, my ocean, my trees.
You are my voice, my thoughts, every breath I breath, every step I take.
Every song, every melody, every joy, every tear.
You are my courage, you are my strength.

And now I want to say:
Stop all the clocks, turn off the electricity, put out the stars and turn off the sun.
Let the storms blow below Heaven, and spell out with the clouds for everyone to see "She is gone."
Let the rains fall because the world weeps that you are not in it.
Then roll up the skies and empty the oceans, they are not needed today.
Because she is gone.
Let the rain fall.

And this is what I said at the memorial...


Things my mother taught me:

She taught me to take one day at a time.
She taught me to live and let live.
She taught me to laugh really hard and really loudly, especially in restaurants or at doctors offices.
She taught me to dance in department stores.
She taught me that actions speak louder than words.
She taught me that no matter how hard I try someone will always be better than me, and that’s okay.
She taught me that no matter how nice I am, not everyone is going to like me, and that’s okay.
She taught me that when I’m sad and I don’t think I can make it through the day, to always keep smiling even if it’s a fake smile and eventually I’ll forget about being sad. (And it really does work.)
She taught me that every single human being has the capacity to change and to be great.
She taught me to have an opinion.
She taught me that it isn’t necessary to share the same opinion with the people you love.
She taught me that being smart is cool.
She taught me how to be ornery and to not let anyone push me around.
She taught me to cheer really loud at sporting events.
She taught me that there is always time to stop at Good Will.
She taught me to always keep a promise.
She taught me that life is fascinating.
She taught me to do whatever is in my power to take care of and protect my family.
She taught me that a marriage is filled with challenges but it can also be the greatest blessing life has to offer.
She taught me that nothing is going to happen to me today that I cannot handle with the help of God.