One year ago today, several things came to an end: Stephanie's fight with cancer, her ability to raise Levi day by day, and our marriage of more than 19 years. BUT, several things came to pass as well: Stephanie now experiences the love of our Heavenly Father in ways we can only dream about and hope for, I have a new, more experienced way in which I view and process life, and we all are better off for having known and reflected on the person that Stephanie was here on Earth and in our lives.

I share with you today a poem (if you can call it that) I wrote in early 2011, about a month after Stephanie's death. As I look back on the last year and reread this poem, there is much to see. The piece that stands out to me now is the analogy I used about a forest fire. The hope they lay just beneath the surface then is now in full bloom. Levi and I have been blessed with a new beginning that promises to grow into a thriving, green forest, rich with love and experience for as long as God wills it to be.

Please, take a moment today and reflect on who Stephanie was and what she meant to you. Thank God for her presence in your life, thank Him for the loved ones in your life, and thank Him for the new beginnings we are all blessed to experience, be it the start of a new family unit or the cleansed life that can only come from the acceptance of our lord and savior Jesus Christ. - Kevin



It is dark and my legs are weak
Tired of it all when she began to speak
Igniting the flame of hope
Travel begins to the place of dreams
Love welcomes with open arms
Acceptance was past
and light filled the corners of my soul

After years of together
Her life was no more
Hope burnt to the ground

The forest floor smolders
But hope lies just beneath
It will prevail and burst through
A beautiful contrast of
Pale green against the black

She smiles in peaceful solitude
The pain and sorrow gone with the wind
Her soul rejoicing in the race she ran
Now embraced by the ones she loves
Warmed by the beauty of perfect light
And rewarded for her faithful fight

Comments

Laura HC said…
It is amazing the things that temper and shape our lives. It is up to us, what we do with the results. Thinking of Stephanie - thankful for the little bundle with the blue eyes grown too quickly and gone before we wanted.
Thinking of you and Levi and the blessing of Jessica and the promise of a joyous life.