Stories and Poems Please feel free to read and copy any of these selections. We have found these pieces encouraging to us over the past years and we hope that sharing them with you will help you in some small way.

"How do you explain taking a fresh fish from salt water, and yet they say there is no God?"
Pius Whittle

THE LEGEND OF THE FORGET-ME-NOT WHEN TO THE FLOWERS SO BEAUTIFUL THE FATHER GAVE A NAME THERE CAME A LITTLE BLUE-EYED ONE ALL TIMIDLY IT CAME AND STANDING AT THE FATHER’S FEET AND GAZING IN HIS FACE IT SAID WITH LOW AND TIMID VOICE AND YET WITH GENTLE GRACE “DEAR LORD” THE NAME THOU GAVEST ME ALAS, I HAVE FORGOT” THE FATHER KINDLY LOOKED ON HIM AND SAID, “FORGET-ME-NOT.”

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I’M FREE DON’T GRIEVE FOR ME, FOR NOW I’M FREE I’M FOLLOWING THE PATH GOD LAID, YOU SEE. I TOOK HIS HAND WHEN I HEARD HIS CALL; I TURNED MY BACK AND LEFT IT ALL. I COULDN’T STAY ANOTHER DAY TO LAUGH, TO LOVE, TO WORK TO PLAY. TASKS LEFT UNDONE MUST STAY THAT WAY I’VE FOUND THAT PEACE AT THE CLOSE OF THE DAY. IF MY PARTING HAS LEFT A VOID THEN FILL IT WITH REMEMBERED JOY: A FRIENDSHIP SHARED, A LAUGH, A KISS; AH, YES, THESE THING I TOO WILL MISS. BE NOT BURDENED WITH TIMES OF SORROW, I WISH YOU SUNSHINE FOR TOMORROW MY LIFE WAS FULL, I SAVORED MUCH GOOD FRIENDS, GOOD TIMES, A LOVED ONE’S TOUCH PERHAPS OUR TIME SEEMED ALL TOO BRIEF - DON’T LENGTHEN NOW WITH UNDUE GRIEF. LIFE UP YOUR HEARTS AND SHARE MY GLEE GOD WANTED ME NOW; HE SET ME FREE.

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AN IRISH BLESSING MAY YOU LIVE A LONG LIFE FULL OF GLADNESS AND HEALTH WITH A POCKET OF GOLD AS THE LEAST OF YOUR WEALTH MAY THE DREAMS YOU HOLD DEAREST BE THOSE WHICH COMES TRUE THE KINDNESS YOU SPREAD KEEP RETURNING TO YOU MAY THE FRIENDSHIP YOU MAKE BE THOSE WHICH ENDURE AND ALL OF YOUR GREY CLOUDS BE SMALL ONES FOR SURE AND TRUSTING IN HIM TO WHOM WE ALL PRAY MAY A SONG FILL YOUR HEART EVERY STEP OF THE WAY

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ALL LEFT HOME To all of you who will listen, I will tell to you a poem, About the sons and daughters, Who had to leave their home. They went to school and took a trade, A job they thought to get, But when their term had ended, There was nothing for them here yet. They had to have experience, And that was hard to find, If they did not give them a chance to work, What else were they to do? They tried to join the union, But that was not to be, And if you’re not in the union, There’s no job for them you see. So they had to leave their homeland, And their families far behind, To go to another country, For a job they had to find. Now all you loving parents, In this world of loneliness, Ask God to lend a helping hand, And he will do the rest. There are so many things in life, That’s hard to understand, But keep your chin up parents, And do the best you can. Now to conclude my story, There is one thing I have to say, I am just a lonely mother, And I miss my family. And now since they have all left home, Life will never be the same, Cause all that we have left of them, Is a picture in a frame. By: W. Cooper The Newfoundland Herald 1998

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THE OLD HOME PLACE I’VE GOT TO TURN ASIDE FROM LIFE’S EXHAUSTING PACE AND MAKE A PILGRIMAGE BACK TO THE OLD HOME PLACE FAMILIAR CHILDHOOD PATHS THROUGH SHADY WOODS I’LL ROAM AND I AT LAST SHALL STAND UPON THE HILLS OF HOME AND THERE FORGOTTEN DREAMS IDEALS THAT SLIPPED AWAY WILL ALL COME MARCHING BACK WHEN I GO HOME TODAY AND I, REFRESHED, SHALL THEN TURN BACK TO LIFE’S MAD RACE IF ONLY I TODAY CAN SEE THE OLD HOME PLACE Perry Tanksley

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OLD THINGS OLD THINGS ARE MORE BEAUTIFUL THAN MANY THINGS BRAND NEW BECAUSE THEY BRING FOND MEMORIES OF THINGS WE USED TO DO BABY SHOES, A TEDDY BEAR A RING THAT GRANDMA WORE ARE TREASURES WAITING THERE BEHIND A DOOR MARKED ‘NEVERMORE” OLD THINGS ARE MORE BEAUTIFUL MORE PRECIOUS DAY BY DAY BECAUSE THEY ARE THE FLOWERS WE PLANTED YESTERDAY

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SURPRISE IN HEAVEN I DREAMT DEATH CAME THE OTHER NIGHT, AND HEAVEN’S GATES SWUNG WIDE, AN ANGEL WITH A HALO BRIGHT USHERED ME INSIDE. AN THERE, TO MY ASTONISHMENT, STOOD FOLKS I’D JUDGED AND LABELED AS “QUITE UNFIT’ - OF LITTLE WORTH AND SPIRITUALLY DISABLED”. INDIGNANT WORDS ROSE TO MY LIPS, BUT NEVER WERE SET FREE, FOR EVERY FACE SHOWED STUNNED SURPRISE, NOT ONE EXPECTED ME! Francis E. Berry

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OVERHEARD IN AN ORCHARD SAID THE ROBIN TO THE SPARROW, I SHOULD REALLY LIKE TO KNOW WHY THESE ANXIOUS HUMAN BEINGS RUSH ABOUT AND WORRY SO”. SAID THE SPARROW TO THE ROBIN, FRIEND, “I THINK THAT IT MUST BE THAT THEY HAVE NO HEAVENLY FATHER SUCH AS CARES FOR YOU AND ME”. Elizabeth Cheney

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MY ROOTS FAR AWAY FROM THE OCEAN AND FAR FROM MY ROOTS FAR AWAY FROM THE OILSKINS AND LONG RUBBER BOOTS FAR AWAY FROM THE BOATS AND THE CLEAN SALTY AIR FAR AWAY FROM THE PEOPLE I LOVE AND HOLD DEAR I PUMP UP THE OIL AND I DIG OUT THE ORE AND THERE’S BILLS IN MY WALLET THAT WEREN’T THERE BEFORE BUT THIS IS NOT REALLY WHERE I WANT TO BE MY HEART IS BACK THERE IN MY HOME BY THE SEA IF I HAD A CHOICE I WOULD LEAVE HERE TODAY I’D PACK MY BELONGINGS AND BE ON MY WAY I’D LEAVE THE TALL SKYSCRAPERS FAR, FAR BEHIND AND PUT THE BIG CITY RIGHT OUT OF MY MIND I’D GO WHERE THE BLUEBELLS STILL NOD IN THE BREEZE I’D SNACK ON BOLOGNA AND MRS. LAMB’S CHEESE I’D BUY A SMALL COTTAGE IN SOME QUIET BAY TAKE BACK MY ROOTS AND FOREVER WOULD STAY

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TEARDROPS AND ROSES AS I SMELL THOSE PRETTY ROSES THEY BRING MEMORIES BACK TO ME I SEE THAT LOVELY GARDEN AT OUR HOME BESIDE THE SEA I CAN SEE MY MOTHER SMILING THROUGH THE TEARDROPS IN HER EYES THAT DAY I LEFT THE ISLAND AND SAID MY LAST GOODBYE IT’S A STORY VERY COMMON ON THE ISLE OF NEWFOUNDLAND IT’S BEEN ETCHED OUT BY THE TEARDROPS UPON THE ROCKS AND SAND FOR THE CHILDREN LEAVE THEIR HOMES AND TRAVEL FAR AWAY THEY VERY SELDOM EVER RETURN BACK HOME TO STAY THEY LIVE THEIR LIVES IN EXILE IN PLACES FAR AWAY AND THEIR HEARTS ARE ALWAYS LONGING TO GO BACK HOME SOMEDAY YOU MAY LEAVE THE DEAR OLD ISLAND AND LIVE A LIFE SO GRAND BUT YOUR SOUL REMAINS IMPRISONED ON THE ISLE OF NEWFOUNDLAND. Bill Kearly, Uxbridge, Ontario

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THE SEEKER FOR MANY YEARS I SEARCHED FOR GOD IT SEEMED I COULD NOT FIND HIS LOVING PRESENCE, VAINLY SOUGHT TO GIVE ME PEACE OF MIND I FOLLOWED BLINDLY, MANY PATHS THAT LED TO GRIEF AND SHAME I TRIED TO EASE MY CONSCIENCE WHEN I’D CALL UPON HIS NAME I KNELT IN CHAPELS, GREAT AND SMALL AND SANG SWEET HYMNS OF PRAISE I BEGGED FORGIVENESS FOR MY SINS FOR PEACE TO BLESS MY DAYS ONE DAY, I FED A HUNGRY CHILD AND STILLED ITS FRIGHTENED CRIES I HELD IT GENTLY IN MY ARMS AND WIPED ITS TEAR-FILLED EYES I CLOTHED AN ELDERLY MAN AND GAVE HIM SHELTER FROM THE COLD THE TREMBLING SMILE UPON HIS LIPS WAS LOVELY TO BEHOLD MY QUESTING HEART WAS FILLED WITH JOY I CAME TO UNDERSTAND EACH TIME I HELPED SOMEONE IN NEED I TOUCHED THE MASTER’ HAND. JULIE E. JONES

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TO MY WONDERFUL WIFE There aren’t enough words to tell you I love you, Not enough ways to show you I care, Not enough laughter and good times to wish you, Not enough wonderful moments to share; A Million bright mornings Would not be too many, Warm evenings forever would be too few, I want you and need you So much that it seems There aren’t enough days in a lifetime with you!

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ONE HUNDRED YEARS FROM NOW ONE HUNDRED YEARS FROM NOW IT WILL NOT MATTER WHAT KIND OF CAR I DROVE WHAT KIND OF HOUSE I LIVED IN HOW MUCH I HAD IN MY BANK ACCOUNT OR WHAT MY CLOTHES LOOKED LIKE BUT THE WORLD MAY BE A LITTLE BETTER BECAUSE I WAS IMPORTANT IN THE LIFE OF A CHILD

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SHOULD YOU GO FIRST Should you go first and I remain to walk the road alone, I'll live in memories' garden, dear, with happy days we've known, In spring, I'll watch for roses red when fades the lilac blue, In early fall when brown leaves call, I'll catch a glimse of you. Shouly you go first and I remain for battles to be fought, Each thing you've touched along the way will be a hallowed spot. I'll hear your voice, I'll see your smile, though blindly I may grope, the memory of your helping hand will buoy me on with hope. Should you go first and I remain to finish with the scroll, No lengthening shadows shall creep in to make this life seem droll. We've known so much of happiness, we've had our cup of joy, But memory is one gift of God that death cannot destroy. Should you go first and I remain, one thing I'd have you do, Walk slowly down that long, long path, for soon I'll follow you. I want to know each step you take, that I may walk the same; For some day down that lonely road, you'll hear me call your name.

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The Journey's Just Begun Don't think of him as gone away ...... His journey just begun life holds so many facets ..... this earth is only one ..... Just think of him as resting from the sorrows and the tears in a place of warmth and comfort where there are no days or years Think how he must be wishing that we could know today how nothing but our sadness can really pass away And think of him as living in the hearts of those he touched ..... for nothing loved is ever lost ..... and he was loved so much E. Brenneman

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The Far Greater Bay Where the great Atlantic Ocean sweeps the coast of Newfoundland And the mighty ships and fishing fleets converse from foreign lands There's a lonely deserted inlet rich in history and fame And rightly named by a native son as "The Far Greater Bay." Though the English won the battle and claimed it for their own The French have left their influence and names on many towns >From the capital "Placentia" to "Isle aux Valen" on the west Jean de Gaunt, Rose au Rue, Petite Forte, and Presque. In World War II the Americans made their presence in the Bay They built a mighty naval base to save us from harm's way And Roosevelt and Churchill, in 1941 Signed the great Atlantic Charter granting safety and freedom. History was made again during World War II On a wintery night in February 1942 When the Truxton and the Pollux ran aground near Chamber's Cove Sending many young Americans to a watery grave below. But the greatest event that happened in the history of the Bay Was in the 1960s when the islanders moved away In search of greener pastures and the lure of mainland life No longer to toil for a livelihood on an ocean filled with strife. They said we never could return to the places we left behind But our homes remained within our hearts as well as in our minds The bonds were strong and so were we, the ties could not be loosed We did not like the government game and to play it was no use. And slowly people did return to the coves they left behind They bought new boats and fished the sea, they had no axe to grind They erected lovely cabins on the land where they were raised And kept alive the memories of life in Placentia Bay. Vera (Brown) Mitchell © 2005

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MY IRISH ROOTS MANY YEARS AGO WHEN TIMES WERE POOR, MY ANCESTORS LEFT THEIR IRISH SHORE. AND CAME TO LIVE IN NEWFOUNDLAND, AND MADE IT THEIR HOME I UNDERSTAND. THEIR TRIP NO DOUBT WAS NO PLEASURE CRUISE, THEY LEFT WITH LITTLE AND NOT MUCH TO LOSE. AND WITH THEIR SELF RESPECT INTACT, THEY CROSSED THE OCEAN NOT TO BACK. THEY DIDN ‘T HAVE WAGES PUT ASIDE, IT WAS HARD HOW THEY LIVED AND ALSO DIED. MOST OF THE THINGS THEY WERE ABLE TO DO, WERE UNSKILLED JOBS WHICH WERE MIGHTY FEW. THE FISHING THEY KNEW TO BE REALLY GOOD, THEY TILLED THE SOIL AND CUT THE WOOD. AND ROOTED A LIVING OUT OF THE GROUND, TO KEEP BODY AND SOUL WELL AND SOUND. THEY CUT THE WOOD TO BUILD THEIR BOATS THEN SET THEM ON THE OCEAN AFLOAT. THEY GREW THEIR VEGETABLES ON THE LAND, AND MADE IT THEIR HOME IN NEWFOUNDLAND. SOME SETTLED ON THE STRAIGHT SHORES. WHERE THE WIND BLEW HARD AND THE FIERCE SEA ROARED, YET SOMEHOW THEY HAD THE STUFF TO WITHSTAND, THIS WAY OF LIVING IN THEIR NEW FOUND LAND. AND WITH THEM THEY BROUGHT THEIR WAYS AND MEANS, THEIR LOVE FOR FAMILY AND OTHER THINGS MADE FRIENDS AMONG US AND MARRIED WITHIN, TAUGHT US THEIR SONGS AND HOW TO SING. WHEN I WAS JUST A WEE SMALL CHILD, MY MOMMA TAUGHT ME SOME IRISH WAYS. AND I ‘VE NOT FORGOTTEN THEM TO THIS DAY, THO’ SOMETIMES I FELL DISMAYED, WHEN I THINK HOW HIGHT THE PRICE THEY PAID. TO COME AND LIVE IN NEWFOUNDLAND, NEVER TO RETURN TO THEIR HOME SHORES AGAIN. THEY MUST HAVE MISSED THEIR LAND FAR AWAY, AND PERHAPS THEY MEANT TO RETURN SOMEDAY YET, SOME OF THEM NEVER DID GO BACK, I KNOW THIS TO BE A FACT. I AM SO PROUD TO BELONG TO THEM, AND I THANK THE LORD FOR MY IRISH KIN. AND TO BE AS STRONG AND WILLING, WHEN TIMES ARE HARD TO EKE OUT A LIVING. B. JOAN HICKS

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TOWARD THE END By: Mary Lane What will it be for toward the end for me? Will I see the sun coming up when I cannot sleep? Colors, red, green and brown and all the others sky and sunset, and flowers, all the lovely flowers, and grass and trees? And eyes! Will I dare to look? Will they be kind and true? Or ........... tired of you ---- Will I hear Ah? The soothing sounds of wind and rain and music? And voices? Dare I listen Will they be sweet and calm and accepting of me? Or harsh and hurried and, must this person be? If I can only feel ---- hands, helping me from bed to chair ---- Will they care, be gentle and sure? Or make me feel they

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THE BROKEN CHAIN WE LITTLE KNEW THAT MORNING THAT GOD WAS GOING TO CALL YOUR NAME IN LIFE WE LOVED YOU DEARLY, IN DEATH WE DO THE SAME IT BROKE OUR HEARTS TO LOSE YOU, YOU DID NOT GO ALONE; FOR PART OF US WENT WITH YOU, THE DAY GOD CALLED YOU HOME YOU LEFT US PEACEFUL MEMORIES, YOUR LOVE IS STILL OUR GUIDE; AND THOU WE CANNOT SEE YOU YOU ARE ALWAYS AT OUR SIDE OUR FAMILY CHAIN IS BROKEN, AND NOTHING SEEMS THE SAME; BUT AS GOD CALLS US ONE BY ONE THE CHAIN WILL LINK AGAIN. WHAT DO WE LIVE FOR IF NOT TO MAKE THE WORLD LESS DIFFICULT FOR EACH OTHER. - GEORGE ELLIOTT YOU MAY SEARCH MY TIME-WORN FACE, YOU'LL FIND A MERRY EYE THAT TWINKLES, I AM NOT AN OLD LANy, JUST A LITTLE GIRL WITH WRINKLES! - EDYTH E. BREGNARD

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