In Loving Memory of
Cathy Anne McNamara

January 1, 1950 - October 12, 2004

Photo by CathyM, October 2002

A LEGACY OF JOY

She wasn’t supposed to live many years
The disease was a fatal and vicious foe
Yet Cathy determined to make life count
She would not be cowered and beset with fears

Life was too precious and each day could be
A lifetime of living and she vowed to fight
Making life a treasure, finding happiness each day
Her legacy would be joy for all to see

Creatures great and creatures small
Were recipients of her tender care
She rescued the furry, or leggy or finned
Nothing would perish, nothing at all

She loved the hummingbirds with glossy wings
Darting and hovering among the flowers
She loved the eagles as they soared so high
And the mockingbird at night as he joyously sings

Wisps of fog rising on an early morn
Smells of rain falling on the welcoming earth
The glistening of spider webs woven as lace
Renewed her spirit and new strength was born

To live each day as though it would be her last
When pain would visit as pain is wont to do
She thought of her family and how lucky to be
On earth so long, when the die had been cast

She would live and she would leave when her day came
Yet she would have her fill of love, joy and hope
She filled it to the brim and left nothing undone
Her loving and her leaving left nothing the same

The footprints she left were carved by living
She wasted no time on “what might have been”
Yet, she left us a gift, a legacy of joy
Teaching us that happiness is found in our giving.

Remembering always, our CathyM,
a soul that soared before she received her wings.

Juanita – October 13, 2004©

Photo by CathyM,
Jason (son), Anisa (granddaughter),
and Big Bird (Blue Front Amazon Parrot)

CELEBRATE LIFE

When you wake up today and can move and breathe
As you stagger to the kitchen to make your cup of coffee
As you yell at your kids to get up and get ready for school
If you are able to do all these things, celebrate life

If you have elderly parents to run errands for today
If your life’s partner is healthy and whole
If you have a roof over your head and food to eat
If you have all these things, then celebrate life

If, through some miracle, you have feathered friends
And today like every day you clean up their mess
Yet, looking into their bright eyes filled with love for you
If you have these precious gifts of love, celebrate life

If you are in pain today and it hard for you to move
Or, if you have a debilitating disease and worry about tomorrow
Yet you are still able to give love and to make others happy
Celebrate your life and be thankful that you are loved and needed

Then, at the end of your days when you must say goodbye
You will know that you have given all you had and enjoyed it to the fullest
You will be leaving nothing undone but are taking it along on your journey
And all of those who are left behind will Celebrate Your Life.

Juanita ©

Photo by CathyM, November 2002

LIFE IS A GIFT

Life is a gift with beginning and end
Its' secret contained in how we will spend

Our time here on earth whether happy or sad
Is here in our hearts be it good or bad

What do we choose, how should we feel
As life ever changes and with pain we must deal

Do we turn bitter and blame everyone
When our hearts are broken with no place to run

Or do we accept both the joy and the pain
Of losses and loves and experience gain

Do we harden our hearts and refuse to care
Or accept our trials and others' burdens to share

Whether our time here is short, or be it long
Life should be both weak and strong

As we are forged by the Master's hand
Into a vessel that is worthy to stand

Tall and proud and able to say
I changed a life as I walked this way

My footsteps will fade and time will forget
But the good I have left I'll never regret

For life is a gift with beginning and end
Its' gift is contained in the time we will spend.

Cathy, your time was well spent and you enjoyed this gift of life with all your heart.

Juanita ©

The Whisper Of The Feather
dedicated to CathyM

You were here with me today.
I heard you in the whisper of the feather.

Standing alone, my heart heavy, approaching this anniversary of your passing.
You spoke to me, saying that you are now free from the mortal limitations of your body.

You spoke through the flock of birds, sitting in the trees
above, listening to my heart.
First softly and as I thought longer about you,
The voices of the flock got louder.

All at once they took flight, a flock of sparrows.
Telling me that you were here and free,
with the whisper of the feather.

~Sati~ November 10, 2004 ©

For Cathy M

Although I didn't know you much
And we never really spoke a word
It's plain to see the lives you touched
And that your voice was clearly heard.

I honestly don't know what to say
When I read through all these pages
As I learn about your life today
I saw that you were so courageous.

It's sad how we take others for granted
How we pretend that forever will last
Then news leaves us feeling empty handed
When we hear of a friend who has passed.

You showed us all that life can start
With the spirit you have inside
Add an ounce from within your heart
And then you stir it all up with pride.

We learn a little more each day
So don't ever think that you'll be gone
We take what we've learned along the way
And with hope we all try to carry on.

You may be gone but we'll never forget
Will you please say a prayer for me?
We look back on life and never regret
Because you'll live long in our memory.

rest in peace, Cathy M

Michael - October 13, 2004 ©

COUNTRY LANES

She walked down winding country lanes
Breathing in the essence of true living
Listening to its’ voice as it spoke to her
Passing by old barns with weathered vanes

Spring brought a special joy each day
Life bursting forth wherever she might look
Birds busy building nests among the trees
The sounds of loons on the lakes seemed to say

It’s a new day, arise and live again, lift your voice and sing
Soon, the feeders would be surrounded by the sounds
Of hovering wings, colors of iridescent hues, feeding
Oh, how she loved the hummers that came each spring

As summer came with its’ long days and warm nights
She walked the lanes, some days hearing the screams
Eagles were soaring overhead looking to feed their young
She would pause and ready her camera for such sights

Ah, but when autumn came, with the smell of pumpkins pies
Leaves cascading down in colors that dazzle the palette
Crispy mornings as she walked along those paths
Living life to the fullest, seeing the wonder through loving eyes.

Her life, she knew, had been filled to overflowing
She had known love in so many wondrous forms
So soon, we say, and yet this lady knew she had lived
A lifetime, full and courageous, and a heart ever knowing.

Juanita – October 23, 2004 ©