Death is nothing at all. I have only slipped away into the next room.
Whatever we were to each, that we are still. 
Call me by my old familiar name, 
speak to me in the easy way which you always used. 
Laugh as we always laughed at the little jokes we enjoyed together. 
Play, smile, think of me, pray for me. 
Let my name be the household word that it always was. 
Let it be spoken without effort. Life means all it ever meant. 
It is the same as it ever was; there is absolutely unbroken continuity. 
Why should I be out of your mind because I am out of your sight? 
I am but waiting for you, for an interval, 
somewhere very near just around the corner. 
All is well. Nothing is past; nothing is lost. 
One brief moment and all will be as it was before - only better, 
infinitely happier and forever - we will all be one together with Christ.

We sat beside your bedside,
Our hearts were crushed and sore,
We did our duty to the end,
‘Til we could do no more.
In tears we watched you sinking,
We watched you fade away,
And though our hearts were breaking,
We knew you couldn’t stay.
You left behind some aching hearts,
That loved you most sincere,
We never shall and never will,
Forget you, Mother (Father) dear.
For many years the family chain,
Was closely linked together,
But, oh, that chain is broken now,
The main link gone forever.
The sunshine of our happy home,
Must always clouded be,
But thou O Lord has sent this cross,
We bear it all for thee.

Gone from our home that smiling face,
The cheerful happy ways,
The heart that won so many friends,
In bygone happy days.
Lonely is the home without you,
Life to us is not the same,
All the world would be like Heaven,
If we could have you back again.
In dreams we see her smiling face,
And kiss her tender brow,
But in our aching hearts we know,
We have no mother now.
The voice is now silent, the heart now cold,
The smile and the welcome that met us Of Old,
We miss her and mourn her in sorrow unseen,
And dwell on the memory of days that have been.
We sat beside your bedside,
Our hearts crushed and sore,
We did our duty to the end,
‘Til we could do no more.
In tears we watched you sinking,
We watched you fade away,
And though our hearts were breaking,
We knew you could not stay.
You left behind some aching hearts,
That loved you most sincere,
We never shall and never will,
Forget you, mother dear.

When I must leave you 
for a little while, 
Please do not grieve and shed wild tears, 
And hug your sorrow to 
you through the years, 
But start out bravely with a gallant smile, 
And for my sake and in my name, 
Live on and do all things the same. 
Feed not your loneliness on empty days, 
But fill each waking hour in useful ways, 
Reach out your hand in comfort 
and in cheer, 
And I in turn will comfort you 
and hold you, 
And never, never be afraid to die, 
For I am waiting for you in the sky. 
(Helen Steiner Rice)

A bouquet of beautiful memories,
Sprayed with a million tears,
Wishing God could have spared you,
If just for a few more years.
It does not take a special day,
For us to think of you,
Each Mass we hear, each prayer we say,
Is offered up for you.
We cannot bring the old days back,
When we were all together,
The family chain is broken now,
But memories live forever.
It was a sudden parting,
TOO bitter to forget,
Only those who loved you,
Are the ones who will never forget.
May he rest in peace, dear Jesus,
In Thy heavenly home above,
With the Sacred Heart Of Jesus,
In His Own eternal love.
Along the road to yesterday,
That leads us straight to you,
Are memories of happy days,
Together we once knew.
The blow was hard, the shock severe,
To part with one we loved so dear,
Our loss is great, we’ll not complain,
But trust in God to meet again.
A silent grief that’s in our hearts,
No human eye can trace,
For many a broken heart is hid,
Beneath a smiling face.

You can only have one mother, 
Patient, kind and true. 
No other friend in all the world, 
Will be the same to you. 
When other friends forsake you, 
To mother you will return, 
For all her loving kindness, 
She asks nothing in return. 
As we look upon her picture, 
Sweet memories we recall, 
Of a face so full of sunshine, 
And a smile for one and all. 
Sweet Jesus, take this message, 
To our dear mother up above, 
Tell her how we miss her, 
And give her all our love. 
Your life was love and labour, 
Your love for your family true, 
You did your best for all of us, 
We will always remember you.

Amen.

“All I ask of you is that wherever you may be,
you will remember me at Holy Communion
and at the foot of the Altar.”

– St. Monica.

O Jesus, full of grace and charity, 
victim for sinners, so impelled by 
love for us that you willed to die on the 
cross. I humbly beseech you to glorify in 
heaven and on earth the servant of God, 
Padre Pio of Pietrelcina, Lonely is the home without you, 
Life to us is not the same, 
All the world would be like heaven, 
If we could have you back again. 
A light is from our household gone, 
A voice we loved is still, 
A place is vacant in our home, 
That never can be filled. 
May the God of love and mercy, 
Care for our loved one who is gone, 
And bless with consolation, 
Those left to carry on. 
The happy hours we once enjoyed, 
How sweet their memory still, 
But death has left a vacant place, 
This world can never fill. 
How dearly we loved you, 
And prayed you might live, 
But Jesus just beckoned, 
And we had to give. 
God gave us strength to bear it, 
And courage to fight the blow, 
What it has meant to lose you, 
God alone will ever know.
ho generously 
participated in your sufferings, who loved 
you so much and laboured so faithfully 
for the glory of your heavenly Father and 
for the good of souls. With confidence 
I beseech you to grant me, through his 
intercession the grace of 
which I ardently desire. 
Glory be to the Father ... 
(Three times).

It was a sudden parting, 
Too bitter to forget, 
Those who loved you dearly, 
Are the ones who can't forget. 
We often sit and think of you, 
And think of how you died; 
TO think you could not say goodbye, 
Before you closed your eyes. 
Your life was one Of kindly deeds, 
A helping hand for others needs, 
Sincere and true in heart and mind, 
Beautiful memories left behind. 
The blow was hard, the shock severe, 
To part with one we loved so dear, 
Our loss is great, we'll not complain, 
But trust in God to meet again. 
Two tired eyes are sleeping, 
willing hands are still, 
The one who worked so hard for us, 
Is resting at God's will. 
Our family chain is broken, 
Nothing seems the same, 
But as God calls us one by one, 
The link shall join again.

Distance takes us far apart 
And darkens my today. 
I have to keep remembering- 
You're just a thought away. 
When the world is too confusing, 
Times are hard to bear, 
I pull your precious meaning, 
Your bright spirit from the air. 
If I sometimes drift into 
A lonely state of mind, 
I gather up the memories 
Of days we left behind. 
And though you're not beside me, 
I can tap into my heart 
And draw upon the warmth and love 
That lives when we're apart. 
And with these fond reflections 
On the times when you were near, 
I sense a little bit of what 
It's like to have you here.