October 24, 2002
December 28, 2002
When Is It Time?
When is it time to say goodbye
To all the love I've known,
When is it time to end your pain,
And leave me all alone?
I've watched you on your good days when
I feel your strength renewed;
But shortly after little ups,
The down days then ensue.
We ride this roller-coaster of
Emotions as we try
To make it through another day,
And yet, I can't deny ...
That as I look into your face
On days that have been bad,
I see a look that beckons me…
It's tired, and hurt, and sad.
The little spark I used to see
Behind those loving eyes,
Is growing ever clouded
By life's cruel inhumane side.
I try to see beyond the pain
You feel with every step;
And softly whisper to myself,
”This may get better yet.”
If I can bear to watch you
Just another day or two,
I justify my reasons to
Ensure I cling to you.
For letting go is harder for
The person left behind;
It means that if I let you go,
I cannot turn back time.
Back to the days I long for now,
When you were full of life;
And every day held promise,
And our futures, clear and bright.
"When is it Time?"
Dedicated to
Alyssa Marie McKinney Sampson
January 16, 2005 - March 22, 2005
Congenital heart Defect
But now the lights are darkening ...
We take it daily now;
I cannot see our futures clear
Or think beyond this cloud.
I think the hardest part in this
Is never knowing why,
I have to be courageous
And I have to say goodbye.
For if I let myself admit
It's time to let you go,
I'd have to face reality
Without you ... but I know ...
That soon I have to face the
Final outcome that I dread,
And holding on will only serve
To hurt you in the end.
You've given such unselfish love
For all our time in life,
But if I hold too tightly,
You'll not move t'ward the light ...
On to a better life, where you
Can once again be free,
Of all the pain and discomfort
That holds you here to me.
So if I find the courage just to say
This last farewell,
I hope you will forgive me for
The time it took me; still ...
I'll hold with me the memories
That in my heart remain,
Pray one day, down the road a'ways...
They'll lessen my own pain.
by Kit McCallum
For Those Few Weeks
For those few weeks
I had you to myself.
And that seems too short a time
To be changed so profoundly.
In those few weeks,
I came to know you...
And to love you.
You came to trust me with your life.
Oh, what a life I had planned for you!
Just those few weeks--
When I lost you,
I lost a lifetime of hopes,
Plans, dreams, and aspirations...
A slice of my future simply vanished overnight.
Just those few weeks--
It wasn’t enough time to convince others
How special and important you were.
How odd, a truly unique person has recently died
And no one is mourning the passing.
Just a mere few weeks--
And no “normal” person would cry all night
Over a tiny, unfinished baby,
Or get depressed and withdraw day after endless day.
No one would, so why am I?
You were just those few weeks my little one.
You darted in and out of my life too quickly.
But it seems that’s all the time you needed
To make my life so much richer
And give me a small glimpse of eternity.
From Bereavement Magazine, Feb 1989
"For Those Few Weeks"
In Loving Memory of Baby Canter
Beloved child of Lillie Canter
May 25, 2009
We love you Baby Canter
from your mommy Lillie and
your siblings Zachary, Kristen, & Troy
