Memorial Day – 2015 | Kevin Barrett's Blog

Memorial Day – 2015

May 25, 2015 by kmabarrett

[Two quotes and a poem for Memorial Day 2015. Please say a prayer of thanks for the sacrifice of those we’ve lost and for their families. One side note: the poem was found on one of the blogs I follow and is presented as it appeared there. In researching the poem, I found there are multiple versions and an “original”. As a matter of curiosity and for comparison, I am also presenting that version. — KMAB]

A hero is someone who has given his or her life to something bigger than oneself.

— Joseph Campbell
American Writer / Lecturer

Let us never forget the heroes who saw beyond themselves and the families they left behind to pledge and deliver all they had to uphold the liberties we all cherish.

— Carolyn W. Colvin
Acting Commissioner
Social Security Administration

A Thousand Winds

Do not stand at my grave and weep,
I am not there; I do not sleep.
I am a thousand winds that blow,
I am the diamond glints on snow,
I am the sun on ripened grain,
I am the gentle autumn rain.
When you awaken in the morning’s hush
I am the swift uplifting rush
Of quiet birds in circling flight.
I am the soft star-shine at night.
Do not stand at my grave and cry,
I am not there; I did not die.

Written by: Mary Elizabeth Frye

[This (above) was the version used by the newspapers for Mrs. Frye’s obituary. — KMAB]

[Found at: http://pacificparatrooper.wordpress.com/
The specific blog post is at: http://pacificparatrooper.wordpress.com/2015/02/23/tribute-2/ ]

[Original version:

A Thousand Winds

Do not stand at my grave and weep
I am not there, I do not sleep
I am in a thousand winds that blow
I am the softly falling snow
I am the gentle showers of rain
I am the fields of ripening grain
I am in the morning hush
I am in the graceful rush
Of beautiful birds in circling flight
I am the starshine of the night
I am in the flowers that bloom
I am in a quiet room
I am the birds that sing
I am in each lovely thing
Do not stand at my grave and cry
I am not there I do not die

Written by: Mary Elizabeth Frye

End of “original” version]

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On This Day In:
2014	I Resemble That Remark
2013	Long Range Exploration
2012	UBI
2011	Opportunity

Posted in Other Blogs, Philosophy, Poetry, Quotes | Tagged Carolyn W. Colvin, http://pacficparatrooper.wordpress.com/, Joseph Campbell, Mary Elizabeth Frye, Memorial Day - 2015, Other Blogs, Philosophy, Poem: A Thousand Winds, Poems, Quotes | 3 Comments

3 Responses

on May 25, 2015 at 8:05 pm | Reply Marie Hunter Atwood

Hi, Kevin, hope you have a great weekend. About the ‘versions’, I have to admit I like both. The Original seems more ‘down home’, a bit simpler, but then the one titled A Thousand Winds is more poetic. It reminds me of a dinner I attended where the entre was a foreign dish, with several hours of preparation to recommend it. As the guest oohed and ahhed over the taste another guest said with some scorn, why I could make better in half and hour and fewer ingredients! I wondered about these two offerings and was particularly intrigued that one might be a copy of the other, and if so who copied ‘whom’? Best wishes to you and your family.
- on May 26, 2015 at 9:59 am | Reply kmabarrett
  
  Hi Marie,
  Thank you for the visit and the thoughtful comment. I don’t really know where the 1st version came from. I only know it was used in the newspapers as part of her obit. I think your allegory is wonderful! I think it is more likely Mrs. Frye thought: “I’m tired… I’ll just shorten up the prep time and drop few of the more subtler ingredients.” LOL
  
  I think the background story is quite fascinating… Mrs. Frye had a houseguest who was unable to get back to visit her dying mother due to anti-Semitism in Europe. The young lady lamented she would not even be able to cry at her mother’s grave… Supposedly, Mrs. Frye immediately sat and wrote out the poem on a brown paper bag (shades of Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address napkin). Mrs. Frye never published or copyrighted the poem because she felt this would cheapen the poem which Frye believed was a gift from God. A final note: try substituting “YHWH” the Hebrew word for Yahweh, which translates (roughly) to English as “I am who am” for the multiple “I am” appearances in the poem. Remembering that the poem was a gift to a young Jewish lady, there is (perhaps) an even deeper meaning than just the passing of her mother. At least I find it more reassuring interpreted this way. By the way, this idea was proposed on one of the blogs I looked at researching the poem. I am only passing it on as one interpretation.
  
  It is believed Frye passed along multiple copies to other friends in need, so she may have been the one to “shorten the recipe”, but it is just as likely others made changes to the poem. So, it’s unlikely the obit version will ever be authoritatively attributed.
  
  Again, thanks for the visit and the comment.
  Kevin
  - on May 27, 2015 at 1:59 am | Reply Marie Hunter Atwood
    
    Thanks for the background. Very interesting!