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               Current Postings - "On Life's Journey" - Story/Poem/Quotations
               Past Postings - Quotations
               Past Postings - "On Life's Journey"
               From Grief to Memories Campaign

A Thought for Today:

How far that little candle throw his beams!
So shines a good deed in a weary world.

                 William Shakespeare

Current Posting: 

On Life's Journey . . .

Words of Mother Teresa
"The Simple Path"

The fruit of silence is prayer;
the fruit of prayer is faith;
the fruit of faith is love;
the fuilt of love is service;
the fuit of service is peace.

(It all begins with silence...)

A Quotation . . .

"Sometimes our light goes out
          but is blown into flame
               by another human being.

Each of us owes deepest thanks
          to those who have rekindled this light."

                                        - Albert Schweitzer

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A moment of prayer . . .

May we all seek and find
The clarity of vision and united strength

May the sound of compassion
Ring amidst the show of human clashes        

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Past Postings - Quotations

How far you go in life depends on your being
     tender with the young,
     compassionate with the aged,
     sympathetic with the striving,
     and tolerant of the weak and strong . . .

     . . . because someday in your life,
     you will have been all of these.

                              - George Washington Carver

A bit of fragrance
always clings to the hand
that gives roses.
                       -   a Chinese Proverb

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Past Postings - On Life's Journey

Dedicated to Mom
    by Diane Brown

My beloved mother is gone now
She's gone ahead of me
No more pain and suffering
Our Lord has set her free

The tears I've shed so often
Have a different meaning for
Her eyes have closed, her heart has stopped
I'll hold her hands no more

The past few years Mom changed so much
Her illness etched away
The life and memories of a loved one dear
Like a child she now would stay

She lost the simplest things in life
And now could walk no more
But what a smile she gave to me
When I came through her door

The words that came from her sweet lips
Were mumbles soft and low
Though sometimes hard to understand
Her precious love would show

So be at peace with God now
He'll take good care of you
And I'll try hard to carry on
As you would want me to

Death is Pink

In life, world’s religions can separate mankind.
     At death, they lose their confines and see heart-to-heart.

In life, money can buy power and security.
     At death, naked souls regain their dignity.

In life, we see ourselves through the eyes of others.
     At death, we find clarity of our own vision.

In life, we travel to new places using MapQuest.
     At death, we are always on time and never get lost.

In life, we measure time by the ticking clock.
     At death, there is no rush hour.

In life, devouring a pound of chocolate means a ton of guilt.
     At death, no one needs Weight Watchers or Diet Cokes.

In life, we exercise our body to look trim and fit.
     At death, we exercise our soul to the music of Light.

In life, we pull behind us a wagon full of "hurts."
     At death, they are mere statistics cleansed of emotions..

In life, we work hard to forgive and forget.
     At death, forgiving becomes a matter of fact.

So why are we afraid to face this thing called "death"?

What if we believe that at death --

     Every day becomes a celebration?
     Drinks are made of freshly made snow?
     Dinners are cooked with magnificent clouds?
     Air is filtered with the scent of the forest?
     Magical wings take us to wherever we want to go?
     Streets are adorned with roses, lilacs and gardenias?
     Fabrics are woven from the rays of love?
     Prayers reach everyone at the blink of an eye?
     And Death is painted Pink, warm and fuzzy pink?

                                                                    Kei Gilbert  (9/2002)

                    A Painful Loss

It's when our battle is lost
leaving us feeling homeless and unloved
that we make choices
stemming from our character

Those with a desire to create
count the assets among the ruins
Those who concede to despair
count the losses among the ruins

So our window is now broken
and the jagged edges are strikingly sharp
The choice is ours to sit on the broken glass
or to rebuild the window using its frame

It's the vision of the future
that begins our constructive thoughts
Moving us forward
to forgive ourselves of the past.

                                  - Kei Gilbert ( 5/29/01)

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From Grief to Memories Campaign:   9/17/01- 1/31/02
              Over 2400 books have gone as gifts from donors from:
              MD,  WA DC,  VA,  PA,  NJ,  CO,  MT,  OR,  ID,  OH, RI,  NY,  CA, 
                   FL,  KY,  NC, WA, Canada (British Columbia),   Japan (Tokyo,
              Kanagawa, Nagoya), China (Keirin)

What a gratifying outcome!!  It all began with a simple wish of wanting to help the 9/11 families in a special way. Now, months later, we know that the books have reached not only the families but are being shared by others. One book at a time, donations came.  The books left here wearing the donors' names and hearts.

If you are one of those who received the book and would like to thank the donor through this site, please write to me via "Contact Us."  I will be happy to post your comments.

December 12:  The Red Cross Grief Relief Opersations (3 sites - NY, NJ and N. VA)  received our 1012 books on December 12. The books were given to the families via family assistance centers and home visits.  Each book went with a card (donated by Vikings Office Supply), which explained the meaning of the donor's name on the book cover, and of course, had words of sympathy and support.  We received a beautiful thank you letter from the Red Cross indicating how touched they were with the gift.

January 9:  Catholic Charities received 120 books.   Again, strong words of appreciation came from their grief counseling group.

January 15:  Boxes of books (300) were delivered to the Pentagon group meeting, where they were made available to the family members. 

January 18:  Boxes of books (704) were picked up by the National Fallen Firefighters Association.  The books are being distributed through the Counseling Service Unit of the Department and the Bureau of Health Services. A beautiful appreciation letter from the association was received.

February 5: 300 books were given to local hospice groups.

The fundraising campaign was closed as of 1/31/02.  Close to 2500 books were distributed.  Thank you for your interest.  Now that the value of the book has been confirmed, I will focus on making it available to others who are grieving.

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