Guest Blog: A Blessing For The End of Life

Photo by Tim Mossholder on Unsplash
Photo by Tim Mossholder on Unsplash

Janice Steinberg is the author of the book “The Tin Horse”. She has allowed us to post this blessing that she created for her mother on her mother’s 99th year. We offer it to you in this darkest time of the year (winter solstice time) as we look with hope to a new year and a mitigated pandemic. Thank you Janice.

Whatever you have lost
vision
hearing
reason
if, on your tongue, speech jumbles
or strength has leached from your bones

May the hands that bathe dress feed you
be strong and skilled
keeping you from harm
or shame
May they be kind
lingering a moment
to squeeze your hand
caress your cheek

May your hearing aids be cleaned
May your television remote work
May your soup be warm and ice cream cold
May you have ice cream!

May you take pleasure in
sunlight on your face
a fresh breeze bearing
the scent of new-cut grass
the lilt and bounce of a song you once danced to

Whatever has wounded you
may you find peace

May death
when it arrives
take you gently
tenderly
enfolding you into a
loving embrace

 

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