CelebratoryCelebrant

Though I can’t share this day with you
The way we used to do,
I carry all the love you gave
In everything I do.

Your laughter lives within my days,
Your kindness lights my way,
The lessons that you taught me then
Still guide me every day.

So when the springtime flowers bloom
And Mother’s Day is here,
I smile because your love remains
Still close to me, still near.

For mothers never truly leave …
Their love goes on and on,
A quiet strength beside our hearts
Long after they have gone.

It’s so tender how we humans keep small rituals alive when everything feels uncertain, believing wishes can steady us when control is gone.
We save memories, talk to the sky, replay old words, and hide screenshots because proof of connection keeps us breathing.
We pretend we are fine, assign feelings to songs, trust mornings to forgive, and ask “are you okay?” when what we really need is company.

We keep loving, dreaming, and showing up even when exhausted, because hope needs somewhere to rest, and tomorrow still feels possible, even in the darkness, where light flickers softly, reminding hearts that survival is quiet, brave, human work.

🖼️ Félix Vallotton - Undergrowth in Spring, 1923.

How lovely is this?
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There are so many things I have discovered since I had to go.
And I want to share this one with you - I want to let you in on the secret.

You see, I know you feel a sudden pull of emotions sometimes. Those moments when you lose composure and losing me hits you afresh all over again. And it might be at seemingly trivial, inconsequential times like when you’re brushing your teeth or getting into the car for work. Or at 2.30pm on any given Wednesday.

And you won’t really know why but you will suddenly remember me. Not that you’ll have forgotten me, but that I am - in that moment - all you can think about.
Overwhelmingly so.

Well, here’s the secret; that’s because of our heartstrings.
We are connected to everyone we love by invisible, unbreakable threads. And when one of us misses the other person, we only need to pull on those heartstrings to bring them a little closer to us.

Sometimes it hurts. Sometimes we grab desperately at the thread like a life buoy in a storm and our string is pulled so abruptly that it burns.
But it never breaks.

And I just wanted you to know this. So that you can be comforted by knowing that, in the moments when you suddenly miss me the most…
It’s because I am missing you too.

********

Becky Hemsley 2023
Artwork by Shawna Erback

‘Heartstrings’ is from When I am Gone: https://amzn.to/3YqC9NL
(affiliate link)

Such lovely writing from Becky…
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If one day something shifted
And the world around us changed
So that we saw the weights
That people carry every day

Perhaps we'd notice burdens
Round the shoulders of a friend
Or watch a stranger pull a train of grief
That never ends

Perhaps we'd see that someone
On the bus can barely stand
Because of all the heaviness
They hold within their hands

Perhaps we'd see a colleague
Carrying a box around
And watch them - as the day goes by -
Stoop closer to the ground

We'd recognise the load of things
We're never normally shown
We'd see that people carry
So much heaviness alone

And maybe if we saw it all
We'd stop a little while
We'd load our words with kindness
And we'd speak them with a smile

For maybe all our judgement
Would be softened into grace
And all our empathy would make
The world a better place

Yes, perhaps we’d move more gently,
Speak compassion to the air
If just for once, our eyes could see
The weights that others bear

*****

This is a newer poem that isn't in any of my books, but details all existing collections can be found on my website: beckyhemsley.com

Becky Hemsley 2025
Artwork by Paige Payne

The start of a new year is often accompanied by feelings of hope. But when you’re grieving, the return of January can sometimes bring difficult emotions with it too. The ‘Letters to heaven’ post box at Reading Cemetery and Crematorium is for the use of anyone who would like to send a message to someone they’ve lost.

Located on Path Four of the Gardens of Remembrance. Every letter or card put into the memorial post box is treated with the utmost respect and confidentiality when it is emptied, they are stored securely before cremation and are never opened or read.

The Letters to Heaven’ post box was donated by Nicola and Will Middleton in loving memory of their baby boy, Leo. Through Will’s incredible fundraising efforts, Nicola and Will have made this heartfelt addition possible.

Thanks to the Middleton family, this special space is a lasting tribute to their beloved Leo and is now a comforting place for all families to remember their loved ones.

Just One Thing #6

https://rdguk.info/J1T26_xFLrI

f you’re reading this then I wish you a very very happy Christmas.
Enjoy and savour every moment, make new memories and remember old ones. Take a moment to speak to those who maybe alone or struggling. Christmas is, after all, about love and sharing, and hope for peace on earth….