These poems were written for a very close friend of Cathy, but I think the sentiments can be shared with all her friends. Frist, Sept 29, 2016, second Dec. 29, 2016, then Feb. 7, 2016

As my grief slowly subsides

I think you of you, her friend

Let me be by your side

Together our hearts will mend

Blessed we were to share this love

A spirit so rare and pure

Never again, might we hope

Such a pain like this endure

Words alone such as these

Will simply skim the surface

Our deeds and acts they alone

Will give meaning and a purpose

So dear friend take my hand

Fear not that you are alone

It is with you I stand

For our friend in her new home

In loving memory of Cathy

Fred

A year end reflection, Dec. 29, 2016

Cathy

Like a thief, fate stole her life

She was robbed

A door left open, in it came,

Struck and went and left naught but pain?

And what was in her life that we should know

A joy, vitality, a golden glow?

A thrill to wake up every day

Make the bed and up up and away

Lists of things, placed in priority

First things first, her soriorty

Get them done, don't hesitate

Strict on time and never late

Did she have a sense of urgency

Of an upcoming emergency?

That drove her hard every day

To get things done, put away

We don't know, yet can surmise

That fate's curse did truly surprise

She had thought through deeds and giving

She earned her place amongst the living

Then why we rail, did fate choose her to go

What purpose, what plan to show?

That naught it means to live quite rightly

That death is blind….it's mark unsightly

So, what did we learn from our dear friend

That it matters not what the end?

She left her mark and that's the core

Death missed that, we know for sure.

Fred

Feb. 7, 2017 As the month's go by the days are still long.

Waiting Time

Yes, I know how to 'fix myself'

But time has not yet assuaged

The guilt of things unsaid, that I felt

For which a price must first be paid

I strain to hold myself in check

Forgo the quick and easy fix

I heed not life's call and beck

Now or future, I stay here inbetwix

Fred

March 26, 2017. This is a song I wrote for Cathy and posted it in her memory at 6 months.

Cathy's song.

Today was our big day, really big day

I got on a stage and sang some songs

But perhaps you didn't know

Because you went away, you should have been there all along

It was you that encouraged me to sing

Because music was in your heart and soul

And now with that gift you did me bring

We have reached our common goal.

You wanted me to feel the music's beat

The way you did when we danced

And so I committed to learn just how

And the stage in Arden gave me the chance.

There were four other men that played along

Dave, Larry, Pat and Miles

I was a bit off key, forgot some words of all three songs

But someone clapped and others smiled.

I came off stage and drove on home

A tear trickled down, feeling really blue

I shouldn't have been there all alone

Cathy, today and this song are just for you.

Fred