I will never forget to remember that I love you. ~ DJM

Today we re-member ourselves to those who have died, to those we knew and loved and to all those we never knew but who were known and loved and grieved by a mother or father, brother or sister, child or friend. We are part of this circle of memory, we are joined with all others in this circle of love and woe and hope of “mercy clothed in light.” Leaning into this mercy, we re-member ourselves to God’s unforgetful love and await the day when—stepping out of this earthly circle—we will join all those snug in the embrace of God’s grace.

NOTES FROM THE OTHER SIDE

I divested myself of despair
and fear when I came here.

Now there is no more catching
one’s own eye in the mirror,

there are no bad books, no plastic,
no insurance premiums, and of course

no illness. Contrition
does not exist, nor gnashing

of teeth. No one howls as the first
clod of earth hits the casket.

The poor we no longer have with us.
Our calm hearts strike only the hour,

and God, as promised, proves
to be mercy clothed in light.

~ Jane Kenyon

Short Trip Home · Mike Marshall · Sam Bush · Joshua Bell · Edgar Meyer
1999, Heartland: An Appalachian Anthology

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