Mum it was Joels birthday today and we had a good time talking about you and your love for life. We know you are not here on earth but our thoughts of you will always be wirh us.

You Gave Us Life, You Gave Us Love You fed us well, you made us strong You taught us to know right from wrong You made us feel that we belong You showed us the value of a song You gave us life, you gave us love You always knew the way we feel You used the words you thought might heal You convinced us it was no big deal Your advice would keep it real You gave us life, you gave us love You would use your powers to beguile You sometimes used that cheeky smile You would buck the trend but all the while You’d be doing it in style You gave us life, you gave us love Broken hearts you liked to mend It was not in your nature to offend Birthday cards you’d always send You knew the value of a friend You gave us life, you gave us love You’ve left us now, you’ve gone away We’re left behind, we have to stay So we’ll just have to pray We’ll meet again another day You always had that ‘special touch’ We love you very, very much You gave us life, you gave us love

Life is a journey and we travel each day of our lives hoping, planning and looking forward to what lies ahead. We enjoy the present and remember good times from the past. But no matter how carefully we plan, no matter what our hopes and dreams for the future might be, as we travel through life we’re going to get caught by surprise as well as unexpected hardships delays and problems along the way. One of those unexpected hardships is the death of a loved one. No matter how much we prepare and think about death, when it comes we’re never really ready for it. No matter how much or how little advanced warning we have the death of a loved one always catches us off guard and stops us in our tracks. In times like these, we have to look into our faith and seek the deeper meaning of hope in our lives. Today we have to pause for a moment and catch our breath because death has caught us by surprise again. We pause for a moment not to mourn Pat’s passing but to celebrate and remember her life. Pat was different things to different people, a mother, a confident, a friend. Whatever the nature of your relationship with Pat today is a day to give thanks to God for bringing her into your life and giving you the privilege of knowing her and sharing part of your life with her. Today we come together with our different memories of her. We come to share those memories and experiences and to remember that each or them was a gift from God. Pat may have gone on to be with her Lord but our memories, her laughter, her language – words like fretteration, eye baby etc, - and her love will live on with us forever.