Barry's Memorial Service

We held a memorial service for Barry yesterday, Friday and a visitation Thursday night. Over two hundred friends, colleagues and family members came to pay their last respects to Barry. My daughter Kathy, printed a copy of the blog I wrote to tell you about Barry's passing. The reason she did that was for the family. All of us were so touched by your blog comments. Thank you for sharing your heartfelt messages. People who came to the memorial were also touched by your comments to the blog. I cannot read them without crying. We placed the blog in the white binder on the table below.



Another bit of work from Kathy was to visit many of the tribute pages bloggers had posted in remembrance of Barry. Kathy posted those beautiful bits of writing on display boards for all to read. People were not surprised by the words you wrote from blogland but only commented on how accurate your perceptions were for people who had never met Barry in person.



Barry would have wanted your voices to be heard at his memorial. Your writing captured his spirit. Everyone at the funeral loved Barry and all admired his gift for reaching out to people's hearts. Everyone felt he left our world to early and no one was ready to say goodbye to him yet. Neither was I. But I did and we did and you did. Thank you all.

Tomorrow I will post one more blog on this page. After a few days, I will leave the blog up but disable the comments sometime next week. I will still be blogging at Living in the Eastern Woodlands.

Barry

I am sorry to share this post tonight with all of you. Barry passed away at noon today. His breathing became very laboured and after they gave him several medications for pain, he stopped breathing.

Sometimes during a war, the General dies on the battlefield. It doesn't mean the battle is lost, it could mean the General won the war but lost his life trying. That is the stuff heroes are made of.

Barry did not loose his battle with cancer today. The cancer is dead and gone forever now. Barry however, will always live on in our hearts. I consider Barry a hero, not a person who has lost anything.

On the Saturday closest to April 3rd every year our family will meet at a local bookstore and celebrate "Buy a book for Grandpa Day" and we will all buy a book in Barry's memory.

Thank you for all of your love and support. Barry really did enjoy blogging and he looked forward to sharing all of your comments.

Barry Edward Fraser April 3, 1943 to July 20, 2010. Rest soundly, my love.

Where am I?

Today I flew.

I didn't expect to fly, but neither did I expect to almost pass way two weeks ago.

That life, what a kidder!

But I 'll write more about all that next week. It's still a bit touch and go here.

The flying part? They used a hoist to get into my new wheel chair.

I'll write more next time.