A Symbol of Hope
A Symbol of Hope
A butterfly lights beside us like a sunbeam
And for a brief moment its glory
and beauty belong to our world
But then it flies again
And though we wish it could have stayed...
We feel lucky to have seen it.
Unknown

Am Always With You
When I am gone, release me, let me go.
I have so many things to see and do,
You mustn't tie yourself to me with too many tears,
But be thankful we had so many good years.
I gave you my love, and you can only guess
How much you've given me in happiness.
I thank you for the love that you have shown,
But now it is time I traveled on alone.
So grieve for me a while, if grieve you must
Then let your grief be comforted by trust
That it is only for a while that we must part,
So treasure the memories within your heart.
I won't be far away for life goes on.
And if you need me, call and I will come.
Though you can't see or touch me, I will be near
And if you listen with your heart, you'll hear
All my love around you soft and clear
And then, when you come this way alone,
I'll greet you with a smile and a "Welcome Home".
Unknown

Messenger of God
Oh, Little Butterfly,
Messenger of God,
When I see you in the sky
I cannot help but nod.
You bring me respite
From grief and despair
Every time I see you
Sailing through the air.
You renew my faith
In all God's wondrous plan,
And I know it's all in FAITH,
Not in what I understand.
Kathryn Poland (4-12-01)

I AM NOT THERE
Do not stand by my grave and weep
For I am not there.
I do not sleep.
I am a thousand winds that blow.
I am diamonds that glint on snow.
I am the sunlight on ripened grain.
I am the gentle autumn rain.
When you awaken in the morning hush
I am the swift uplifting rush of butterflies in joyous flight.
I am the soft stars that shine at night.
Do not stand at my grave and cry.
I am not there.
I did not die.
Unknown

Butterfly Memorial Poem
A rush of wings
they flutter high
to touch the sun
and kiss the sky
A butterfly
is with us now
No more a caterpillar
upon a leaf
(Person's Name) with angel wings
A soaring butterfly
with us they sing
by
Lili Pintea-Reed copyright 2002
for the IBBA

Butterfly Benediction
May the morning sun caress you,
The rains of change refresh you,
And the gentle breeze of His Spirit
Lift the wings of your transformation.
by Richard D. Breen, copyright 2003
Dedicated to my mother,
Frances F. Breen, 81

On The Wings Of Hope
As an ancient legend goes;
If anyone desires a wish to come true,
they must capture a butterfly and whisper that wish to it.
Since butterflies make no sound,
They can’t tell that wish to anyone but the Great Spirit,
So by making the wish and releasing the butterfly,
It will be taken to the heavens and be granted.
Although this legend implies that we should keep our wishes silent,
there are some wishes that need to be expressed out loud.
To those that have been touched by the disease we are helping to fight today,
We wish the caregivers strength and tranquility,
and thank them for their gifted labor of love.
We wish the survivors a long and happy life,
and thank them for showing us how to fight with courage and determination.
We wish those currently fighting the battle energy and hope,
and thank them for showing us what true bravery is all about.
And finally, we wish the victims peace and love,
and thank them for the joy and happiness they brought to us.
With this symbolic gesture, we honor those that have left us and encourage
those left behind to continue the fight “On the Wings of Hope”.
Legend

As you release this butterfly in honor of me,
know that I'm with you and will always be.
Hold a hand, say a prayer,
close your eyes and see me there.
Although you may feel a bit torn apart,
please know that I'll be forever in your heart.
Now fly away butterfly as high as you can go,
I'm right there with you more than you know.
By Jill Haley

While Waiting for Thee:
Don't weep at my grave, for I am not there,
I've a date with a butterfly to dance in the air.
I'll be singing in the sunshine, wild and free,
Playing tag with the wind, while I'm waiting for thee.
~~ We are as the wings of a butterfly, bound together with the love of God~~
Jenn, The Butterfly Box

From Dan & Zane Greathouse:
A couple of weeks ago, we filled an order for a 22 year-old's
funeral, and we received this poem from the funeral..."A butterfly lights beside us like a sunbeam.
And for a brief moment its glory and beauty
belong to our world.
But then it flies on again,
and though we wish it could have stayed,
we feel so lucky to have seen it."On the back of the paper it says:

"Today we celebrate life with the release of butterflies.
The animals you have been given will emerge from their envelopes
and alight on your hand for a moment before flying off.
Butterflies, a symbol of life, and freedom, were always special to
(name).
When instructed, please open the envelope and allow the butterfly to emerge on its own. It may take a few moments for the beautiful creature to adjust to the light and temperature
before it flies off.
These animals are natives, will thrive and insure the continuation of their species,
keeping memory alive."

This Butterfly Story was sent in by Tammy in honor of her son Christopher

In a green meadow filled with Milkweed and flowers there lived a colony of
caterpillars. They were a happy colony, living a quiet life in the cool
shade. For many months they were very busy,
scurrying around and munching on the soft Milkweed leaves.

They did notice that every once in a while one of the colony seemed to lose
interest in crawling around with its friends. It would go off alone and
crawl high up in the trees. It gradually moved out of sight and was seen no
more.

“Look!” said one of the caterpillars to another, “one of our colony is
climbing up to the tops of the trees. Where do you think he is going?”  Up,
up and up it slowly went…even as they watched, the caterpillar disappeared
from sight. Its friends waited and waited but it didn’t return.

“That’s funny!” said one caterpillar to another. “Wasn’t he happy here?”
asked another. “Where do you suppose he went ?” wondered a third. No one
had an answer. They were greatly puzzled.

Finally one of the caterpillars gathered its friends together. “I have an
idea. The next one of us who climbs to the tops of the trees must promise
to come back and tell us where he or she went and why.”
“We promise…” they all said solemnly.

One spring day not long after the caterpillar who had suggested the plan
found himself climbing high up into the trees. Up up and up he went, higher
and higher into the trees. Before he knew what was happening he had broken
through the canopy of leaves into the warm sunlight and fell into a deep
sleep.

When he awoke he looked about in surprise. He couldn’t believe what he saw.
A startling change had come over his old body. He now had beautiful wings!

Even as he struggled he felt an impulse to move his wings. The warmth of
the sun soon dried the moisture from his new body. He moved his wings again
and suddenly found himself flying into the blue sky.

He had become a butterfly. Swooping and dipping in great curves he flew
through the air. He felt exhilarated in the new atmosphere.
By and by the new butterfly landed on a leaf to rest. Then it was that he
chanced to look below to the bottom of the meadow. Why, he was right above
his old friends the caterpillars! There they were, crawling around and munching on Milkweed, just as he had been doing before.

Then the butterfly remembered his promise. Without thinking the butterfly
darted down. He landed on a flower and looked into the grass. Now that he
was a butterfly he could no longer go back.

“I can’t return!” he said in dismay. “At least I tried, but I can’t keep
my promise. Even if I could go back, not one of the caterpillars would know
me in my new body. I guess I’ll just have to wait until they become
butterflies too. Then they’ll understand what has happened to me and where
I went.”

And the butterfly winged off happily into its new world of sun and air.
Dear God, please remember those who have left the meadow we live in…and
remember us who are still here.

Ten Years Without You

The time with you was all too brief
Ten years have passed but we still grieve
Missing you is still very strong.
Although the years have come and gone
Your memory is deep within out hearts
Until the day we are no longer apart

Unknown

Still Missing You

They say there is a reason
They say that time will heal
But neither time nor reason
Will change the way we feel.

For no one knows the heartache
that lies behind our smiles,
No one knows how many times
we have broken down and cried.

We want to tell you something
so there won't be any doubt,
You're so wonderful to think of
but so hard to be without.
We cannot bring the old days back,
when we were all together
The family chain is broken now,
but memories live forever.

Unknown