Memorial to Tanya Burr, killed 15 September 2002
Some Poems from Tanya's 1997 school diary
The following are three poems Tanya took the time to handwrite into her 1997 PNGHS school diary (with the spelling mistakes fixed!!). Their origins are unknown :
Tragedy
Seeing everyone have fun,
dancing, talking, playing.
Hoping it will last a while.
But then something happens,
everyone turns sad,
Not knowing what was wrong,
but sensing it was bad.
Hearing about the tragedy.
Seeing someone die.
I reach out to touch my friend,
thinking how do I
say Goodbye.
A Thousand Words
A thousand words won't bring you back.
I know because I've tried.
Neither would a thousand tears.
I know because I've cried.
I didn't see you close your eyes.
I didn't see you die.
But the thing that breaks my heart the most,
Is that I didn't say goodbye.
Pieces of My Love
Take a small piece of my love for you
and hide it somewhere sweet.
Never tell another soul,
no matter who you meet.
Now take this as a memory,
and leave it in the past.
Life's too short to take it hard,
and good things never last.
If by chance I go away,
or find another home.
If things don't go right for us,
and you feel all alone,
Don't let time waste you away.
Remember your surprise.
That (a) small piece of my love,
Still hides behind your eyes.
Tanya's Diary Entry: Saturday, 31 May 1997 - "Mum picked me upp, found out my cousin Jamie had crashed his motorbike the night before and was in a coma and on life support, might die. Went to see him and I didn't want to say anything in case he hears. He looked so different. He didn't even look like he was still alive. Everyone's sad."
My Diary Entry: Thursday, 29 May 1997 - "Ironically, in llight of what was to happen the next day, I had a conversation with Tanya on how awful it was for parents worrying about Police coming to their door to say something terrible had happened to their kids. Tanya was to stay with a friend in Highbury on Friday night, but at that stage did not know their address and they had no phone number. They were supposed to go to the pictures but roamed the streets instead and were given a lift home by some Christian group that does this on weekends - and were fed pizza!"
Just after 6:00pm on the Friday night, Jamie hit the front of the milk deliver truck on the corner of Rhodes Drive and Colonial Place in Kelvin Grove, PN, and he and his motorbike had ended up inside the cab with the driver. The accident happened about half way between our home and my parents' home in Roberts Line - these being about 10 minutes walk apart. Despite that, the first our family knew was just after 9:00pm when I was phoned by the hospital to see if I knew where my sister Pam (Jamie's mother) was. No-one knew, and no-one would tell us what had happened under the stupid Privacy Act, as the next of kin had to be notified first (despite everyone in the vicinity of the accident knowing). We used the process of elimination to figure out who was in hospital, but then couldn't find any of Jamie's immediate family. Some frantic hours later it transpired that Pam was having dinner with friends and only Jamie knew this - and he couldn't tell us. After a very long time and some touch and go moments in the early days, Jamie is fine, but carries reminders of the accident - especially to his leg. However, the experience is also strange to look back on now.
The accident occurred because the truck, which had its indicators both flashing on the hazard mode, and had unexpectedly (by Jamie) crossed the path of the bike - which had a failed headlight - as the truck turned into Colonial Place. Jamie had discovered the headlight problem when en route home at dusk with the newly purchased bike.
My Diary Entry: Saturday, 31 May 1997 - "On the way to Daannevirke, Tanya and I visited Jamie in ICU. It was pretty horrific. He was flat on his back with tubes and wires everywhere and his right leg totally bandaged....We didn't know if he could hear anything. Tanya said he looked dead (In shock!!). All I could think about was Jamie as a toddler and I had to try not to cry..."
