~My First Mother's Day~

Another Mother's Day! But a different one this year. For, you see, I am a mother but my child isn't here. I am a mother who is hurting for my child who was so dear, as I face this and other occasions each and every year. I am a mother who feels an emptiness over and over again. Because I miss THIS child and all that could have been. I am a mother who cared as I watched my child grow and truly loves her as only another mother could ever know. I am a mother who has memories and many tears to cry, over regrets I'll have to live with until the day I die. I am a mother who is thankful for the miracle of birth and all my child taught me about life and my own self-worth. I just can't stop being a mother because my child isn't here. The love we have for each other will continue throughout my years. And so, on this special "Mother's" Day, I will feel within my heart all the pride, love and joy which make up all the parts of who I am and what I'll always be I am Tammy's Mother! Just remember that.....please

A Grieving Parent Is... A grieving parent is someone who will never forget their child no matter how painful memories are. A grieving parent is someone who yearns to be with their dead but connot conceive leaving their living ones. A grieving parent is someone who has part of a heart as the rest is buried with their child. A grieving parent is someone who begs for relief from the memories which plague them and then feels guilty when they get it. A grieving parent is someone who pretends to be happy and enjoying life when they really are dying inside. A grieving parent is someone who can cry or laugh at the drop of a hat whenever they remember their beloved child. A grieving parent is some who feels as if they just lost their child yesterday no matter how much time has passed. A grieving parent is someone who fears for their remaining family because they cannot bear to have any more losses. A grieving parent is someone who sits by their child's gravestone and feels a knife stabbing their heart. A grieving parent is someone who wants to help others who have lost loved ones because somehow their loss is theirs all over again. Copyright Judy Skapnik

Mothers' Day 2004

Another year without my Daughter~
but things such as this from friends help me get by.
Thank You Saralyn

Your child is now in heaven
And your heart and life seem blue,
And you may well be thinking
What "happy" means to you.

It may seem just a short time
That your sweet child went away
Or it may seem a hundred years---
It's different every day.

No matter if you had your child
For forty years or none,
You earned the name of "Mother"
As soon as conception was done.

And even though your arms are bare
And your beloved child is gone,
The honored name of "Mother"
Is something that lives on.

Forever and forever
Your sweet child's Mom you'll be
And in heaven you'll be reunited
For all eternity.

So, dry your tears, sweet Mother,
And lift your heart in love.
You'll always be a Mother
Both here and up above.

c. Saralyn McAfee Smith
May 7, 2004