May 1, 1949 - July 21, 1995
The earth has covered only that which was mortal
of those to whom we have said our farewell.
We shall not see again
The familiar glowing face, the warm illuminated eye,
Nor hear the beloved voice.
Yet death has failed and must surrender.
For the beloved who is gone
Lives and will always live through the years
Not in some distant corner of our being,
To be uncovered only in a rare moment
Or by a sudden surge of recall.
The Beloved has become a presence - indwelling and inseparable.
Rooted so deep that life cannot
Carry us far from the cherished
Now hallowed center of memory and love.
Your hand, O' Death, has been stayed.
You can no longer inflict oblivion,
Or doom to full disappearance
Those who were life of our life.
They live and move within us,
In spheres beyond your dominion.
We thank Thee, O' G-d of life and love,
For the resurrecting gift of memory
Which endows Thy children fashioned in Thy image
With G-dlike sovereign power
To give immortality through love.
Blessed be Thou, O' G-d,
Who enablest Thy children to remember.