Love is a place
and through that
place of love moves
with brightness of
peace all places.
ee cummings
Samantha
1
The Garden Goddess
by Mary
We know you as a good friend, a jeweler, a budding artist. And I wonder if everyone also knows that you were a Garden Goddess. How do I know that you were a Garden Goddess? The best cucumber I have ever eaten came from your personal garden. I remember once when I came over for dinner, that, in addition to the delicious cucumber, you also harvested—minutes before dinner—the greens that made up the salad. I remember your wise mother saying: “Dinner is almost ready—time for the salad!” You walked into your backyard to your raised bed and collected the ingredients. You prepared a perfect salad dressing after washing your harvest and delivered to the table the finished product: the freshest best tasting salad that could only come from a Garden Goddess.
I miss walking with you in the gardens.
Veronica Howard by me
by Veronica Howard
I was born on September 14, 2001, at Stanford University Hospital. My family was very happy when I was born. When I came home my eyes were still closed. My family adored me so much.
I was two years old when I first went to Death Valley. It was December, 2003, and we were camping at Furnace Creek. They have a golf course and a wonderful restaurant. They also have a pool and you can ride horses. We go there every year for Christmas.
I got my stuffed animal, Gingy, in 2004. Gingy is one of my favorite stuffed animals. I got it because my mom was shopping and I was bored so I grabbed a stuffed animal to play with. We walked out and I was still holding it. Then my mom saw I was still holding it and we went back in. My mom could not make me let go so whe bought it for me. I called him my man because I did not know how to say gingerbread man. Now I call him Gingy. He has three buttons and a big red nose. It was a really good day.
I went to Disneyland in 2007. The rides were so much fun. My favorite ride is called tea cups. I went there with my family and friends. We went on a ride where you go on a fire truck and you pumps. We also went on the Indiana Jones ride. It was scary but fun!
Now I am in 3rd grade. It is February 2011 and I am nine years old. My family is still very happy and I still love Gingy.
Memories of Ana Maria
from Judy
I first met Ana in fourth grade at Alta Heights Elementary School in Napa. We were close friends. She was so smart and so interesting. There weren’t many of those kinds of kids out there! Every day she had a Hershey’s chocolate bar in her lunch; lucky girl, I thought. I don’t remember when she moved, but I saw her again at Silverado Middle School where we picked up our friendship and continued with it more intensely at Napa High School. She always looked the same; she never changed. We used to follow John because he was the smartest boy in the school. She was the only girl who could understand his questions in math or science class, and wasn’t afraid to challenge or questions any of his thoughts or of the thoughts of our teachers. Every day at the end of science class, she would hang back and ask Mr. Schroeder, our biology teacher lots of questions. John would be there too, as well as the other two or three “smartest boys in the school.” Our teachers probably hungered for students like Ana to ask intelligent questions. She truly wanted to KNOW.
I was always shy, and Ana challenged me with, “Let’s do this!” for things I would NEVER have done. She wasn’t afraid to be social. I needed that.
In college, she came to my dorm freshman year, all the way from Cal Poly and she convinced me to get a pack of cigarettes from the machine in the dining hall. We tried them in my dorm room. I never tried it again, but I’m grateful that Ana got me to experience things I would never have done. Really. It’s a funny memory.
For Good
(Glinda):
I’ve heard it said
That people come into our lives for a reason
Bringing something we must learn
And we are led
To those who help us most to grow
If we let them
And we help them in return
Well, I don’t know if I believe that’s true
But I know I’m who I am today
Because I knew you…
Like a comet pulled from orbit
As it passes a sun
Like a stream that meets a boulder
Halfway through the wood
Who can say if I’ve been changed for the better?
But because I knew you
I have been changed for good
(Elphaba):
It well may be
That we will never meet again
In this lifetime
So let me say before we part
So much of me
Is made of what I learned from you
You’ll be with me
Like a handprint on my heart
And now whatever way our stories end
I know you have re-written mine
By being my friend…
Like a ship blown from its mooring
By a wind off the sea
Like a seed dropped by a skybird
In a distant wood
Who can say if I’ve been changed for the better?
But because I knew you
(Glinda):
Because I knew you
(Both):
I have been changed for good
(Elphaba):
And just to clear the air
I ask forgiveness
For the things I’ve done you blame me for
(Glinda):
But then, I guess we know
There’s blame to share
(Both):
And none of it seems to matter anymore
(Glinda):
Like a comet pulled from orbit
As it passes a sun
Like a stream that meets a boulder
Halfway through the wood
(Elphaba):
Like a ship blown from its mooring
By a wind off the sea
Like a seed dropped by a skybird
In a distant wood
(Both):
Who can say if I’ve been
Changed for the better?
I do believe I have been
Changed for the better
(Glinda):
And because I knew you…
(Elphaba):
Because I knew you…
(Both):
Because I knew you…
I have been changed for good…
From Wicked the Musical, music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz