Erin

September 20, 2008 is your wedding day.

you begin your married life with Marshall.

you become a part of the Glanzer family.

Marshall becomes a part of ours.

I am thankful for Marshall's family

and the blessings they bring to your marriage

I know they will treasure you as I do for

Your introspective ways

Your desire to right the wrongs you see

your fierce loyalty to the down trodden and disadvantaged

your devotion to their son

and the love you hold in your heart for all

things "Marshall".

Erin,

you have worked hard and have dreams

I am grateful Marshall will be a part of those dreams

I am confident he is the partner God intended

and you will both be an asset to one another.

I pray as you make this journey

that you will see no problem is too big to get through

and you will cherish the challenges that strengthen you.

You said you and Marshall laugh a lot.

Although tears may come,

I pray you will keep that practice alive and

laugh long

laugh heartily

laugh with fervent abandonment.

When you laugh together in love nothing

is too large to conquer.

love to you both,

M.

no words are good enough

Thank you for allowing me a place in the human race

Thank you for giving me space on this planet I call home

Thank you for all the sounds I've heard, sights I've seen,
smells I've smelled and all that I've touched

In the sixty-one years I've been here, I have shared
in so many different experiences

I marvel at the balance I see.

I stand in awe at the intricate way things were planned
so perfect for life.

To say there is no rhyme or reason to what we know
as human occupants of this place we call earth

Is to surely ignore a whole bunch of what's going on

I wish I could express it better but there are no words
to explain all that I feel when I ponder these things.

But it doesn't keep me from trying.

sorrow of sorrows

I am feeling as if my heart would break.....again
reliving the wedding that ended in so much sorrow and grief

it's my daughter's turn and I pray
that her experience will not be like mine
that she will know happiness and security
that her differences will be reconciled.

I want to wrap myself in bubble wrap
so as not to feel any of the jabs and stabs
that may come my way, real or imagined.

just get through this, I say, not to anyone
no one must know the panic that I feel
knowing that memories cannot be stopped
no matter how painful they are

replace those with good ones of my daughter
and her beginnings, filled with so much
hope for the future.
Please, God, help me to focus on this,
just this.