That woman is a success
who has lived well,
laughed often and loved much;
who has gained the respect
of intelligent people
and the love of children;
who has filled her niche
and accomplished her task;
who leaves the world better
than she found it;
who has never lacked appreciation
of earth’s beauty
or failed to express it;
who looked for the best in others
and gave the best she had.

When I am gone, release me, let me go;
You have so many things to see and do.
You must not tie yourself to me with tears;
Be happy that we had so many years.

I gave you my love, you can only guess
How much you gave me in happiness.
I thank you for the love you all have shown
But now it’s time I travelled on alone.

So grieve awhile for me – if you must –
Then let your grief be comforted by trust.
It’s only for a while that we must part
So bless the memories within your heart.

I will not be far away, for life goes on –
So if you need me, call and I will come.
Though you cannot see or touch me, I’ll be near,
And if you listen with your heart you’ll hear
All of my love around you soft and clear.

Then when ‘you’ must come this way alone,
I will greet you with a smile
And a “Welcome Home”.

The memory of her life
lived in peace and harmony,
and entirely dedicated
to the family,
will remain ineffable
in the minds of all those
who knew and loved her.

The memory of his life
lived in peace and harmony,
and entirely dedicated
to the family,
will remain ineffable
in the minds of all those
who knew and loved him.

Do not cry for my absence
feel me close and still
talk to me.
I will love you from heaven
as I have loved you
on earth.

A golden heart stopped beating,
two hands were laid to rest,
God broke our hearts to prove,
He only takes the best.
If tears could build a stairway,
and memories build a lane,
we would walk right up to heaven
and bring you back again.

You were someone special,
Someone good and true,
You will never be forgotten,
We thought the world of you.

You came to us for just a while
and brought with you that lovely smile.
Eyes that beamed with love and sparkle
opened wide, the world to marvel.

A heart so young and filled with love,
but now you rest with those above.
We miss your presence, that’s no lie
and often we can’t help but cry.

But who could wish that you should stay
when pain and illness plagued your way.
Selfish thoughts would want to keep you
when the angels came to meet you.

Your time on earth was very brief,
but memories stay to swallow the grief.
Time will help to heal the pain,
slowly we will live again.

We know how much that we were blessed,
but now they’ve taken you to rest.
To lift again that lovely smile
you shared with us for just a while.

When I must leave you for a little while,
please do not grieve and shed wild tears
and hug your sorrow to you through the years,
but start out bravely with a gallant smile;
and for my sake and in my name live on
and do all things the same.
Feed not your loneliness on empty days,
but fill each waking hour in useful ways.
Reach out your hand in comfort and in cheer
and I in turn will comfort you
and you will know that I am always near;
and never, never be afraid to die,
for I am waiting for you in the sky!

~ Helen Steiner Rice ~

I am standing upon that foreshore.
A ship at my side spreads her white sails to the morning breeze
and starts for the blue ocean.
She is an object of beauty and strength
and I stand and watch her until at length she hangs
like a speck of white cloud just where the sea and sky
come down to mingle with each other.
Then someone at my side says, “There! She’s gone!”
“Gone where?” “Gone from my sight, that’s all”,
she is just as large in mast and spar and hull
as ever she was when she left my side;
just as able to bear her load of living freight
to the place of her destination.
Her diminished size is in me, not in her.
And just at that moment when someone at my side says,
“There! She’s gone!” there are other eyes watching her coming
and other voices ready to take up the glad shout,
“Here she comes!” And that is dying.

Bishop Brent

We speak your name
with love and pride.
We smile through tears
we try to hide.
Thank you Mum/Dad for
the time we shared.
The love you gave
and the way you cared.
You left a place
no one can fill.
We miss you Mum/Dad
and always will.

Death is nothing at all –
I have only slipped away into the next room.
Whatever we were to each other, that we are still.
Call me by my old familiar name,
Speak to me in the easy way which you always used.
Laugh as we always laughed
At the little jokes we always enjoyed together.
Play, smile, think of me, pray for me.
Let my name be the household word that it always was.
Let it be spoken without effort.
Life means all that it ever meant,
It is the same as it ever was;
There is absolutely unbroken continuity.
Why should I be out of your mind,
Because I am out of your sight?
I am waiting for you, for an interval,
Somewhere very near, just around the corner.
All is well.
Nothing is past; nothing is lost;
One brief moment and all will be as it was before –
Only better, infinitely happier and forever –
We will all be one together.

Henry Scott-Holland (1847-1918)
Canon of St Paul's Cathedral, London

When I am gone, release me, let me go.
I have so many things to see and do.
You must not tie yourself to me with tears,
Be happy we had so many years.

I gave you my love, you can only guess,
How much you gave me in happiness.
I thank you for the love you have each shown,
But now it is time I travelled on alone.

So grieve a while for me, if grieve you must,
Then let your grief be comforted by trust.
It is only for a while that we must part,
So bless the memories within your heart.

I will not be far away, for life goes on,
So if you need me, call and I will come.
And if you listen with your heart, you will hear,
All of my love around you soft and clear.

Then, when you must come this way alone,
I will greet you with a smile
and a “Welcome Home”.

To mourn too long for those we love
is self indulgent…
But to honour their memory
with a promise to live a little better
for having known them
gives purpose to their life…
and some reason for their death.

The tide recedes but it leaves behind
bright seashells on the sand.
The sun goes down but gentle warmth
still lingers on the land.
The music stops, yet somehow
continues in sweet refrain.
For every joy that passes,
something beautiful remains.

Martha Vashti Pearson