[Magdalen] "No parent should ever have to bury their child."

[James Oppenheimer-Crawford]

I probably should not have used the term "dress," but I hope we all knew
what I meant.

We went through a miscarriage on good Friday a few years ago. It was a
devastating experience, especially for my wife, since we had been trying
all sorts of interventions to conceive. We ultimately just had to give up.
It did a number on our faith, that's for sure.

James W. Oppenheimer-Crawford
*“A life is like a garden. Perfect moments can be had, but not preserved,
except in memory. LLAP**”  -- *Leonard Nimoy

On Sun, Oct 4, 2015 at 12:04 PM, Jay Weigel <jay.weigel at gmail.com> wrote:

> I know someone who participates in a group that knits/crochets little hats
> and blankets for babies who are stillborn. She had had a 22 week abortion
> of a baby who would not have survived due to severe birth defects and had
> chosen to see the baby. The baby was brought to her in a hat and blanket
> made by a similar group. This is her way of grieving the baby's loss and
> also paying back.
>
> On Sun, Oct 4, 2015 at 1:22 AM, James Oppenheimer-Crawford <
> oppenheimerjw at gmail.com> wrote:
>
> > My wife every so often mentioned her brother Mark, who would have been a
> > little older than her. He was stillborn, and buried in Pittsburgh where
> > they were living at the time. My mother-in-law never spoke of Mark, but
> he
> > was a shadowy figure in the family that was never mentioned.
> >
> > Christine did some checking and found, yes, they knew exactly where Mark
> > was resting, and she arranged to have a modest stone put on the grave,
> and
> > a picture sent to her mother. Helen was very grateful.  She had two
> > children who had lived, so she probably thought she ought to push this
> > memory away, but it was always there.
> >
> > She was a marvelous seamstress, and got asked to assist in a group which
> > sews dresses for the still born children so they can be buried in an
> > appropriate garb. She told her daughter she was not sure she could bear
> to
> > do it, but after she simply got started, she found it fulfilling. Helen
> was
> > one of those people who would take absolutely any event that came her way
> > and find a way to make good come out of it, and I am so very privileged
> to
> > be married to her daughter, who has inherited a lot of that from her.
> >
> >
> > James W. Oppenheimer-Crawford
> > *“A life is like a garden. Perfect moments can be had, but not preserved,
> > except in memory. LLAP**”  -- *Leonard Nimoy
> >
> > On Sat, Oct 3, 2015 at 6:37 PM, Jay Weigel <jay.weigel at gmail.com> wrote:
> >
> > > In March of next year it will be 45 years since we buried our Benjamin,
> > who
> > > lived three months. Benjie was born healthy and always seemed like a
> > > healthy baby, but I put him to bed one night and he never woke up. SIDS
> > is
> > > a horrible thing and I don't think the newest "solutions" are the
> answer
> > > either. October is Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Month, just FYI.
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > > On Sat, Oct 3, 2015 at 4:28 PM, <thedonboyd at austin.rr.com> wrote:
> > >
> > > > Next month it will have been twenty-three years since our daughter
> Amy
> > > > (aged 24)was killed by a drunk driver.  I have no words of comfort
> for
> > > the
> > > > families of the ten who died in Oregon.   In time they will be able
> to
> > go
> > > > on with their lives without being reminded of their loss at every
> turn,
> > > but
> > > > the event will prove to have profoundly changed their lives in ways
> > they
> > > > cannot now foresee.
> > > >
> > > > Lord, have mercy.  Christ, have mercy.  Lord, have mercy.
> > > >
> > >
> >
>