Inukshuk

Yesterday my husband and I went to the Occoquan Fall Arts and Crafts Festival.  There were many different vendors with unique items for sale.  I was drawn to a booth that had a display of unusual glazed ceramic figures.  These handmade small figures turned out to be inukshuks.   I had never heard of these mysterious stone figures before.   I found out that they are used by indigenous peoples of the far north as monuments for various purposes, such as memorials for a beloved person.

The artist, Tessa Wuchenich, had created miniature inukshuks, some of which had a special stone embedded in the figure with a specific meaning.   I liked one Tessa called "Bright Streak" that had a blue lace agate.  This stone is supposed to boost your ability to communicate, especially the thoughts and feelings that you receive from your higher self.   It also aids in emotional healing.   It was very meaningful to me, and I bought this special figure.  I've posted a picture of my inukshuk above.

For more information, take a look at http://www.inukshukgallery.com/inukshuk.html. The artist's web site is http://www.artbytessaw.webs.com.

Angel Miracles

My facebook friend, Cindy Adkins, has just published this wonderful ebook.  Angel Miracles has stories from people who have received messages and signs from loved ones on the other side.  I am delighted that Cindy included two experiences that I've had in her book.  One of the experiences explains how one of my poems came about.  I hope Angel Miracles will touch many hearts.  Her book is available at
http://www.amazon.com/Angel-Miracles-Connecting-Heaven-ebook/dp/B009HOBI88/

Signs From Our Loved Ones

There is a wonderful facebook group that I work with - Signs From Our Loved Ones (https://www.facebook.com/groups/SignsFromOurLovedOnes/).  Guy Dusseault started this unique and loving group in November 2011 as a place where those grieving the loss of a loved one can connect and share and find hope in understanding that our bonds are eternal. We just reached 1,000 members!  I made these Mocha-Caramel Cappuccino cupcakes and posted this picture to the group to share in cyber-celebration.  I know our loved ones in spirit are celebrating with us!

Five Year Angelversary

Five years ago today life as I knew it changed forever with the sudden passing from this earthly life of my precious son, Graham. He lives with me now in a different way. I miss his physical presence more than I could ever say, but he is

always with me. I treasure every moment we had together while he was here. I am so grateful to have been his mother and for the eternal loving bonds that we share. Graham continues to teach me many things. Love never dies.

Angelis - "Even Though You Are Gone"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RUaSddkWl7c

Graham

Our son, you will be forever young,
A handsome man with a heart of gold,
Never having to grow old,
Eternally twenty-two,
To all who knew you.

A loving son and remarkable young man,
Even within your short life span,
You had an amazing mind and tremendous drive,
The power to succeed and thrive,
A visionary artist with a great sense of style,
And the most beautiful smile.

For every wonderful year that we had,
In the joy of being your mom and dad,
For all the love that we knew,
We honor and thank you.

Copyright © C.A. Stevenson 2009

Serenity Prayer Message

This afternoon I noticed that a couple of my patio table chairs had blown over from a strong wind.  As I was walking towards the chairs to straighten them, I noticed there was a butterfly on the memorial bench I have for my son, Graham.  This bench has the famous lines from the Serenity Prayer on it.  The bench is on the patio and was near the two overturned chairs, or else I would never have noticed the butterfly on the bench.  The butterfly wasn't moving, and at first I thought that it was dead.   I went back inside the house to get my camera to take a picture.  I then saw it was alive, but it stayed on the bench for a couple of minutes allowing me to take several pictures of it.   I was sure the butterfly was there so that I would re-read these lines from this special prayer.  That was Graham's message and comfort for me. Graham's five year angelversary is on Saturday.  Forever in my heart.

Memorial Stone

Next week will be our son's five year angelversary.  It's still hard to believe that Graham is no longer physically here, and that it's been five years since we last saw him.  My husband and I decided to have a memorial (paver) stone made for him.  We wanted to honor his precious memory with something special to place beside the lovely koi pond/water feature in our back yard.  The pond was built as a memorial for Graham.  We ordered this personalized paver with Graham's picture and inscriptions from two of my poems.   "Only son, treasured one" is the title of the first poem that I wrote, and the other four lines are from my poem, "Graham."  We are so pleased with the stone.  It is beautifully done in black granite with laser engraving.  This picture we used of Graham is special to us because it was taken at a Fourth of July celebration we held with family and neighbors on our patio two months before he died.  The patio is next to the pond.  There is not a minute that we don't feel Graham's continued presence in our lives.  Thank you, Graham, for being our son.  We love you more than we could ever say. 

Here is the link to the site if you are interested in having a memorial paver.

http://www.ourcornermarket.com/Memorial-Pavers.html

Signs While Driving

My husband and I were out driving recently.  When we were stopped at a light I noticed a pick up truck in front of us because the model was a Dodge Ram Big Horn.  In addition to the Dodge Ram logo it had a silhouette of a ram on the back because it was a Big Horn model (see the picture).  My son, Graham, was an Aries, and the astrological sign for Aries is a ram.   I was looking at the truck and wondering about this possibly being a sign from Graham. When I was speculating about this to my husband he said there was another Big Horn truck in the left lane a couple of cars ahead.  At that moment Chris Daughtry's song "I'm Going Home" came on our car radio (here's the song on YouTube with lyrics - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Ytod23dBeI).  This is a special song to me. I have it on my playlist of songs for Graham.  I believe that Graham was making sure that we knew these were signs from him with this further validation.  Our loved ones in spirit show us in so many different ways that they are truly always with us.

Love

Love

Love, unconditional,
The guiding principle,
When all else fails,
Love will prevail.

The greatest power there is to know,
When we tap into its flow,
A universal energy from God,
Strength for us when life is hard.

Accept, surrender, be at peace,
Open your heart and release,
As Spirit having a human life,
Distance yourself from earthly strife.

Through the filter of love’s eyes,
We can become very wise,
When we focus and search within,
Transformation will begin.

God provides so we don’t fail,
Through life’s trials and travails,
With unconditional support and love,
We learn what we are capable of.

In thankfulness and praise,
Acknowledge Spirit’s ways,
Be a channel of love and goodwill,
To help uplift the world and heal.