Written for my mother's memorial service held March 11, 2000
Celestine
A Life in Five Verses
A many titled lady she—
Daughter, Sister, Wife, Mother, Friend
Grandmother (and a very great one at that).
The ripples once started on life's pond truly know no end.
And a restless literary spirit she—
always chasing the quote, reciting the verse,
preserving the grammar, solving impossible puzzles,
and most importantly passing these insatiable thirsts on to others.
Her stature was far greater than her
diminutive size
for she taught us we need only to reach, only to try; you see
through her we discovered nothing's truly beyond our grasp;
boundless hope and confidence are perhaps her most valuable legacy.
Lovingly she crafted wings for her angels
and this decades before having need to don her own;
"Can I fly with these? Really fly with these?" they innocently asked.
"As high as you want," she replied. "But you knew that, didn't
you?"
For herself, she always wanted to be
where she'd been
and now sadly but gratefully her days of travel are past,
and this dear lady is home at last.
Yes, this dear lady is home at last.