Thursday, July 18, 2013

a week to go


A week to go now before your surgery
Counting down the days in July in 2013
Your family and friends helping you
Ready for the cancer to be excised.

I think of your two young children
And remember being a child of 13
When my mother was stricken with cancer
Though no one told her or us what it was.

I think of you preparing yourself
And remember how it was for me
When I was diagnosed and waiting
My turn on the surgeon’s table.

I send you the thoughts in my heart.
May you have the strength to bear what you must.
May your children know their mother’s love is assured.
May your husband be your comfort and help.

Everyone’s life changes over time
But sometimes it changes overnight.
We don’t get to choose what comes our way
How we respond reveals who we are.

We can cherish each day we are given
Tell the people we love that we love them
Let go of any minor annoyances
And enjoy the time we have with each other.




Wednesday, July 17, 2013

the person you are


It’s happy for me and all the people in your life
That you were born
And became the person you are
All these years every day
We know you will be good to us
Living with you is a pleasure.

It’s not easy getting old if you’re aware
Each year is gone never to be lived again
One less year left to be a human being
No matter that it was a good year
A certain sadness visits our thoughts
Thinking of loved ones taken from us.

Time stretches out more behind us than ahead
Looking back generation upon generation
Back and back to the beginning of life and the universe
It’s harder to imagine far into the future
We make plans for this year and next
We think about what might be 5 or 10 years from now.

Time stands still when you are in the moment
Today we are here with each other very much alive
We marvel at this amazing complex experience
Taking in what’s going on around us and with us
The flow of events near us and far distant
We have such a wonderful life.