Linda Kay Jackson

My sister was more than just a sister, she was my best friend. Growing up, she was like a second mother to me. Every morning she would drag me out of bed to make sure I was up in time for school. Every heartbreak, she was there to give me a shoulder to cry on. She was an amazing sister. She always tried to protect me from everything.

When I was six and got scared at night time, I always knew that I could cuddle up in her bed. She always tried to protect my heart. As I grew older though, I didnt' always need that protection.

My sister knew that, and was able to let me go and take on a different role in my life. She was not my protector in a motherly way anymore, or just a sister, she became my best friend. No matter the situation, I could call on her for advice. Even if I didn't need anything, I could rely on her for a movie night or an old fashioned sleep over. That was simply the way that Linda was. She was an amazing, kind hearted person. I'd like to close with this poem:

One morning I found you in eternal sleep;

I tried to wake you as I began to weep,

But all my pleas you could not hear;

Oh if I could have only kept you near,

Away from the voices of those who went before,

Who beckoned you to come to that distant shore.

I find it so very hard to believe

That you have gone and I must grieve;

I call out your name -- you answer not,

And I look for you in every familiar spot.

Everything seems so strange and surreal,

I ask everyday is it a dream or real?

Where are the soft brown eyes of affection?

Where is the laughter and talk of childhood reflection?

Where is the loving care when I was sick or sad?

Where is the generous soul for which I was glad?

Where is the forgiving and understanding heart?

Where are the bonds that were there from the start?

I miss all the little ways you showed you cared,

For there were so many good moments we shared;

Looking back on my life's assorted scenes,

I realized you taught me what love truly means;

You were my trusted confidante and best friend,

On whose loving support I could always depend.

I look at your smiling face in all my photos;

Memories flood my mind as I touch the mementos

From the happy times you and I have had,

But now these bring tears and make me sad;

For the time together went by in a wink,

Life was not as long as we'd like to think.

Sometimes memories bring comfort and make me smile,

But there are times when grief takes over for a while;

Friends offer gentle words and prayers to console,

And tell me what has happened to your loving soul;

Can it be true what they say of time healing grief?

Is it enough when they say death has given you relief?

Can we believe what others say of a better place,

Where our beloved ones rest in God's warm embrace?

I should be happy you're free of pain and sorrow,

And rejoice that you'll always have tomorrow.

How can I then be so heartbroken and selfishly cry,

Return to me from that peaceful place where you lie!"

Now I look down at your name on a cold hard stone

That says little of the loving light you have shone;

It tells nothing of the wonderful person you were,

And only serves to remind me of the painful loss I endure;

But I know your kind soul wants no tears or pain,

Instead you'd want warm memories and love to remain.

Although I cry and stand grief-stricken by your grave,

I promise not to forget the loving memories you gave;

But still I miss you so very much my sister dear,

And your caring words I once again long to hear;

My heart's only solace is one day I will see you as before,

Beckoning me to come join you on that white distant shore.

Your loving brother, In Loving Memory,

Lee