Look far beyond the twilight vale,

Let go the dying day without regret,

For now’s the time to gaze in wonder

at the glory of the sunset.

Fear not the coming of the night

that from the fading light is born.

Always given……..sufficient stars

to light our way towards the dawn.

This was given me by a dear Sangha friend who, some years later, took her own life. The poem, which may well be original, was pasted onto the back of a post card. It was of the sun setting behind St. Michaels Mount, Cornwall. Now there is a new dawn for her.

I watched a TV program on DVD I’d mentioned a couple of weeks ago about children who were dealing with the loss of a parent through suicide. The interviews were sensitive, the commentary thoughtful and the subject obviously difficult for all concerned. There is a lot of shame and self blame and all shades of emotion tied up in these families that continue on for years after the event. It can never be as if it hadn’t happened, yet memories fade. One small boy reflected that the storm is over however now and then there are flashes of lightening or a clap of thunder. How true that is. How true for traumatic memories in general.

The one thing the children all appreciated was to know there were others who were living through the same thing. In the program Winston’s Wish, a counselling service for children and especially for the grieving was filmed running a week long ‘camp’ for around twenty children who had a parent take their own life. There were smiles and laughter and tears. And some resolution and moving on.

A loyal friend and blog reader wrote me today letting me know she had just moved into her new home. Let this be a new dawn.

Here’s to family gatherings,
And all that it implies,
The laughs, the embraces, and
The muffled, unheard cries.

What better time for karma
To show it’s dynamic hand,
Than when we gather ’round the fire
With our tiny human clan.

So, here’s to watching silently
Amidst the jubilee,
As we allow ourselves (and others)
Just to simply be.