For Tessa

For Ray and Tessa, and all families who have
suffered death and loss to grievous injustice.
My heartfelt prayers are with you!

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Dear Tessa, I miss you
Each day, my little girl.
Your presence in my life
That changed my entire world.
Your laughter, your intelligence.
Your smile that made my day
Shines from heaven where God’s love
Is greater than the pain.
When earthly grief has long passed on,
That love is what remains.

The strength to live without you
I did not want or ask.
And yet this cross I carry now
Cannot be given back.
To lose you to injustice
I never thought I’d face,
Killed the will to live in me
Beyond what words can say.
Wherever I find comfort
Leads me to a better place,
Where suffering is overcome
And heaven and earth embrace.

As humbling as it shattered me,
And shook me to my core,
To find what matters most in life
Is suddenly no more,
These challenges that test my faith
Make me a kinder man,
Forgiving what I cannot change
With trust in greater plans.

By Grace, I give it up to God
What I can’t bear myself,
Accepting what comes back to me
Won’t let my conscience rest:
The call for higher justice
That isn’t found on earth,
But in God’s love that gives us life
And blessed us with your birth.

My love for you sustains me,
Lends courage to my heart,
On days I’d die to be with you
But live to do my part.
Your Sister, Brother,
Friends and Mother
Grieved to let you go,
Leaving such an impact
That makes or breaks the soul.

Dear Tessa, I miss you
Every day, my girl.
Your absence from my life
Has changed my entire world.
 

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Words by Emily Nghiem
Juliet & Romeo Scarlet Letter Opera