“To love is to lay ourselves open to loss. That is the bargain we make with ourselves, because it is worth it.”
A Time to Remember is a service organised by our Family and Carer Support Team, who offer a wide range of support depending on the needs of patients and their loved ones.
Over the course of the year, we hold three services where we invite those who are coming up to or have just experienced the first anniversary of losing a loved one. We join together to celebrate their lives and remember our loved ones.
Poems are read and people who attend are invited to light a candle in memory of their loved one as well as leaving a message on our tree of remembrance.
Here is one of the poems we share during our service:
You Can Shed Tears
You can shed tears that they have gone,
Or you can smile because they have lived.
You can close your eyes and pray that they will come back,
Or you can open your eyes and see all that they have left.
Your heart can be empty because you can’t see them,
Or you can be full of the love that you shared.
You can turn your back on tomorrow and live yesterday,
Or you can be happy for tomorrow because of yesterday.
You can remember them and only that they have gone,
Or you can cherish their memory and let it live on.
You can cry and close your mind, be empty and turn your back
Or you can do what they would want; smile, open your eyes, love and go on.
