Friends & Family - by Wanda Hess

This month I have written a tribute to a very dear friend who now has Alzheimer’s Disease and is a resident at the Springfield Masonic Home.  She doesn’t remember the fun times we had and even my name or recognize my face.  She gave me a gift many years ago of a book called “Leaves Of Gold: An Anthology Of Prayers, Memorable Phrases, Inspirational Verse And Prose.”  Many times I have used this book and would like to share some of those with you.
 
WORTH

It is not what the world gives men , honor, praise or gold;
It is what I do give the world,
So others do unfold.
If my work through life I can
Another soul unfold,
Then  I have done what cannot be
Made good, by praise or gold.
One time thought in tiny word
May give a great one birth,
And, if that thought was caused by me,
I lived a life of worth - Richard F. Wolfe
 
HAPPINESS

Happiness is a butterfly, which, when pursued. is beyond our grasp, but which,if you will sit down quietly, may alight upon you-Hawthorne
               
A FRIEND IS A PERSON

Who will help you in at the hour of sickness;
Who will lend you a dollar without deducting the interest;
Who will help you up hill when you are sliding down;
Who will defend you in the hour when others speak evil of you;
Who will believe in your innocence until you admit your guilt;
Who will say behind your back what he says to your face;
Who will shake hands with you wherever he meets you, even though you wear patches; and
Who will do all these things without expecting any return - Dorothy C. Retsloff
 
OLD FRIENDSHIP

Beautiful and rich is an old friendship,
Grateful to the touch as ancient ivory,
Smooth as aged wine, or sheen of tapestry
Where light has lingered, intimate and long.
Full of tears and warm is an old friendship
That asks no longer deeds of gallantry.
Or any deed at all-save that the friend shall be
Alive and breathing somewhere,  like a song - Eunice Tietjens
 
To my friend, “ Thanks for the Memory”      By Wanda Hess