When I'm Gone

"When I come to the end of my journey
And I travel my last weary mile
Just forget if you can, that I ever frowned
And remember only the smile

Forget unkind words I have spoken
Remember some good I have done
Forget that I ever had heartache
And remember I've had loads of fun

Forget that I've stumbled and blundered
And sometimes fell by the way
Remember I have fought some hard battles
And won, ere the close of the day

Then forget to grieve for my going
I would not have you sad for a day
But in summer just gather some flowers
And remember the place where I lay

And come in the shade of evening
When the sun paints the sky in the West
Stand for a few moments beside me
And remember only my best."

~ Mrs. Lyman Hancock

Gone From My Sight

"I am standing upon the seashore. A ship at my side spreads her white sails to the morning breeze and starts for the blue ocean. She is an object of beauty and strength. I stand and watch her until at length she hangs like a speck of white cloud just where the sea and sky come to mingle with each other.

Then someone at my side says: 'There, she is gone!'

'Gone where?'

Gone from my sight. That is all. She is just as large in mast and hull and spar as she was when she left my side and she is just as able to bear the load of living freight to her destined port.

Her diminished size is in me, not in her. And just at the moment when someone at my side says: 'There, she is gone!' There are other eyes watching her coming, and other voices ready to take up the glad shout: 'Here she comes!'

And that is dying."

~H. Van Dyke

Says The Reaper to a Family...

"Your acceptance is not required to validate my existence." ~F.M.S.

Makes You Stop And Think...

After reading this article in a local newspaper today, I realize that many people take for granted the safety of their children when in the care of a significant other. It baffles me that anyone could or would harm a child in such a way!


Nampa man accused of breaking toddler's arm twice in two weeks

"Mario Gonzalez Jr., 23, was charged with two counts of felony aggravated battery Wednesday in connection with the repeated physical abuse of his girlfriend's daughter over a two-week period.

Canyon County Prosecutor John Bujak said Gonzalez was charged with aggravated battery as opposed to felony injury to a child because the maximum possible penalty for battery is 15 years in prison - five years longer than the maximum penalty for the other charge.

Nampa police began investigating the case Friday after getting a call from an employee at Mercy Medical Center, which was treating the child for a spiral fracture in her left arm.

Police interviewed Gonzalez and the child's mother, but no arrests were made, according to court documents.

Medical reports later showed that the toddler had suffered another broken bone in her arm about 10 days earlier.

Nampa police interviewed Gonzalez at his home in the 200 block of Shoshone Avenue on Tuesday, and he admitted he picked up the toddler by her left arm May 29. The toddler's arm went behind her back, and Gonzalez lifted her up about 3 to 4 feet and dropped her, according to court records.

Gonzalez also admitted to grabbing the toddler by the right arm and pulling her straight out of the crib on either May 19 or May 20. After pulling the toddler out of the crib, Gonzalez burned her on her toe about 15 times with a cigarette, saying he was frustrated that she wouldn't stop crying. Gonzalez also told officers he shook and hit the baby several times.

Gonzalez told police he was frustrated with the toddler every time he struck her and knew he was the one who caused her injuries.

He was arrested and booked into the Canyon County Jail. A judge set a $250,000 bond for Gonzalez, who will have a preliminary hearing on the charges later this month.

Bujak said Thursday the mother of the toddler will not be charged in connection with the case because she fully cooperated with police once she figured out what was going on.

Bujak said the toddler was left alone with Gonzalez when the injuries occurred and that the mother appeared to believe Gonzalez' initial explanation for what happened until she was confronted by police, at which point she began to cooperate with law enforcement."

Don't you wish all parents or parents' significant others were such model caregivers?! It's unbelievable! I suppose this just reminds us all to give kids extra hugs, more of our time, and a lot of patience. There will never be a rational reason to injure a child in such a way! Appreciate what you have, distance yourself from unhealthy relationships, and give your kiddos tons of hugs & love!

Just remember...

War, recession, disease, death. With all the bad news circling around us in these times, it's not hard to take on a negative view of the world.




Yet, somehow, there always seems to be a silver lining to those stormy clouds. Sometimes you just have to look at it from a different angle...change your perspective.

And now...back to the daily grind of the average work week.

Still I Rise


You may write me down in history
With your bitter, twisted lies,
You may trod me in the very dirt
But still, like dust, I'll rise.

Does my sassiness upset you?
Why are you beset with gloom?
'Cause I walk like I've got oil wells
Pumping in my living room.

Just like moons and like suns,
With the certainty of tides,
Just like hopes springing high,
Still I'll rise.

Did you want to see me broken?
Bowed head and lowered eyes?
Shoulders falling down like teardrops.
Weakened by my soulful cries.

Does my haughtiness offend you?
Don't you take it awful hard
'Cause I laugh like I've got gold mines
Diggin' in my own back yard.

You may shoot me with your words,
You may cut me with your eyes,
You may kill me with your hatefulness,
But still, like air, I'll rise.

Does my sexiness upset you?
Does it come as a surprise
That I dance like I've got diamonds
At the meeting of my thighs?

Out of huts of history's shame
I rise
Up from a past that's rooted in pain
I rise
I'm a black ocean, leaping and wide,
Welling and swelling I bear in the tide.
Leaving behind nights of terror and fear
I rise
Into a daybreak that's wondrously clear
I rise
Bringing the gifts that my ancestors gave,
I am the dream and the hope of the slave.
I rise
I rise
I rise.

~ Maya Angelou