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Cherished
Memories
of
Jasper
Izaak Peter Lockett
23.01.01
– 16 02.01
conducted
by
Carol
Pool
of
Circles of
Life ™
Tel:
0117 3770346
Music:
Bright Eyes
by
Simon and Garfunkel
WE
ARE HERE TODAY not just to bid farewell but to celebrate the life of
Jasper Izaak Peter Lockett who died peacefully in Southmead Hospital
on Friday, 16th of February, 2001, with his loving parents
beside him.
I'd like to begin
this ceremony with an anonymous poem, entitled:
The
Day You Left
With
tears we saw you suffer
As
we watched you fade away,
Our
hearts were almost broken,
As
you fought so hard to stay.
We
knew you had to leave us,
But
you never went alone,
For
part of us went with you
The
day you left your home.
Anon
We've hardly had
time to say hello, and yet we have to say goodbye. We knew you for such a short time, just 24 days, but in that
time you touched the hearts and souls of everyone in ways they could
never have imagined.
Our lives will
never be the same, for you showed us what life was really all about;
you amazed us with your spirit, and your strength, your courage, and
your determination to stay. In
the end, you knew your body could no longer sustain life and so you
withdrew to return to the stars from whence you came.
We respect your
decision to leave, we admire the effort you made to stay, and we love
you for the beautiful soul you were.
Jasper’s father
Peter, has asked me to say a few words on his behalf.
'Thank
you'
"Thank
you all, not only for coming today, but also for the wonderful support
you have given Ann and I over the recent weeks - every email counted,
I can assure you.
If an angel had come down a few months ago and given us a
choice of whether to face the next period of time or not - I'm pretty
sure that agreeing to go through it would have been a very daunting
prospect. And I doubt that we could have had the courage.
If an angel came down now and said we could go back to the
start in order to eliminate these past couple of months - would we?
The answer is absolutely not - for even in the short time
Jasper was here in body, the immense positive experiences, feelings,
memories and lessons - far out-weigh the pain, worry and stress that
we have experienced.
Jasper seems to have touched so many in his short life. I
hope you enjoy this celebration of his life. I feel our family
has been lucky to have had such a wonderful little chap – we feel
very privileged."
Music:
Tears in Heaven
By
Eric Clapton
Jasper tried so hard to stay.
He achieved so much in his short life and amazed everyone with
his courage, and delighted them all with his achievements, like being
able to breathe on his own. He
could so easily have given up at the first hurdle but he didn’t, and
even at that tender age and tiny size he showed a remarkable spirit
and his achievements were recorded for all to see on his web site.
Perhaps, when
Jasper began to realise he couldn't stay, he wanted to make sure the
day he left was special. And
it was. It was almost as
if he knew he had slipped into this world too soon for his family to
get together and celebrate his arrival, so he was determined to be
part of a celebration somewhere, and so he chose to go on a very
significant family day, his Aunt Rachel's birthday.
It was also the birthdays of two previous family members, his
great, great uncle Harry, and his great grandfather Isaac, after whom
Jasper received his middle name.
Jasper is very
much a part of two loving families and is the first grandchild born to
Pete's parents, and the fifth one born to Ann's parents.
Ann's father,
Maurice, known fondly as Opa, is going to read us a special tribute to
Jasper.
Epitaph
for Little Fighter
By
Jasper's grandfather, Opa
"We
have four grandchildren, and "Grand" they are – Jessica,
Lily, Robert and Daisy. They
are all different with their own personalities, and characteristics
and are all deeply loved. For
a short time there was a fifth – Jasper – Jasper Izaak Peter
Lockett.
Jasper
was a very much-wanted baby, but he was obviously in a hurry and was
born 16 weeks premature. So
he was a very special baby with only a small chance of surviving,
needing lots of special care and attention but he was a real little
fighter.
Unfortunately
although Jasper fought hard and in spite of all the care, his body was
too weak to cope with the infections he inevitably caught and he died
after 24 days.
Jasper
was with us for such a brief time but he touched our hearts and we
loved him to bits. We
shall never forget him." Opa
And now, Peter’s
father, Michael, Jasper’s Grampy, will say a few words.
“Small
man, big example”
The
next song is, 'I believe I can fly' by R Kelly.
Ann and Pete chose this because, for them, it represents
Jasper’s freedom.
Music:
I believe I can fly
By
R Kelly
Jeanne McCluskie
of the NICU at Southmead, is going to read a poem entitled 'Remember'
by Christina Rossetti (1830-94),
on behalf of all the staff at the unit.
Remember
Remember me when I am gone away,
Gone far away into the silent land;
When
you can no more hold me by the hand,
Nor I half turn to go yet turning stay.
Remember me when no more day by day
You tell me of our future that you planned:
Only remember me; you understand
It will be late to counsel then or pray.
yet if you should forget me for a while
And afterwards remember, do not grieve:
For if the darkness and corruption leave
A vestige of the thoughts that once I had,
Better
by far you should forget and smile
Than that you should remember and be sad.
"It
has been a great privilege to nurse Jasper and to meet his parents Ann
and Pete.
We
meet a lot of babies - they are all special to their parents, they
don't all become special to the staff. In three weeks Jasper made a
very big impression on us all.
Jasper
was VERY special - he was brave and strong. We explained to Ann and
Peter that having a baby at 24 weeks gestation is very hard - a bit
like a roller coaster ride we said, lots of highs and lows. Important
here in Jasper's case that there were a lot of highs.
¨
His
eyes opening for the first time.
¨
Then
the hours spent trying to take a photo of him with his eyes open - we
DO mean hours!
¨
Coming
off the ventilator onto nasal prongs and coming out for cuddles.
¨
His
many expressions and frowns.
¨
Lots
of nice times...
He
was his own person and would let us know if we were doing it wrong,
even at the end he did it his way.
Ann
and Pete made our job much easier - they were very easy-going, they
seemed to know what to do, when to stay and when to go and thought
about the needs of the other babies as well. They did their very best.
We
understand that you hope to raise some money for the unit. We are very
grateful to receive any donations and the money will be put to very
good use. We have some ideas and would like to discuss them with you.
You
obviously have a lot of family and friends, but please also remember
that you have made some friends on the unit."
And now, Pete’s
mum, Pat, Jasper’s Gran, has asked me to read the following poem
entitled Eternity.
"To
Jasper, in memory of a beautiful boy, my very precious, greatly loved
grandson, forever in my thoughts, forever in my heart.
This poem is for you."
Eternity
No
matter how small it may seem,
a grain
of sand has a purpose.
It
can reflect the warmth of the sun,
hold
back the tide,
or
become a beautiful sandcastle.
No
matter how brief it may seem,
a
life on earth has a purpose........
It
can reflect the warmth of love,
hold
back the emptiness,
and
become a beautiful memory.
Eternity
is like a grain of sand,
on
a never ending beach.
Pat also made some
rather lovely observations about Jasper's names, which I'd like to
read for her and share with you all today:
Jasper
Izaac Peter ~ Your names were chosen well, precious baby, for Jasper
means "keeper of the treasure".
You will always be my special little treasure.
Izaak
means "to laugh". I
will picture you laughing on a rainbow.
Peter means "Rock".
You will always be the rock of love and forever dancing in my
mind.
May your skies
always be blue my precious little one, and your days be bright and
sunny in your little bit of heaven.
Music:
Creep
By
Radiohead
Every baby is like
a beautiful jewel, which just needs to be lovingly cared for in order
to show its brilliance to the world.
It's hard to believe sometimes, how something so tiny and so
fragile can have such an impact.
But even the tiniest pebble dropping into a lake creates
ripples, which reach the furthest shores, and Jasper's short life has
in its own way created waves of love and devotion, admiration and so
much more in everyone who was privileged to come into contact with
him. I know your lives
will never be the same again, and those 24 days you spent with him
will always be remembered as amongst the most precious and valued
moments in your lives.
I am
now going to read a verse taken from Little Star by Madonna,
which has been requested by Jasper’s Auntie Katie.
Little
Star
Never
forget who you are
Little
star
Never
forget how to dream
Butterfly
God
gave a present to me
Made
of flesh and bones
My
life my soul
You
make my spirit whole
Never
forget who you are
Little
star
May
the angels protect you
There's
no reason to weep
Lay
your head down to sleep
Little
star
May
goodness surround you
Little
star
Shining
bright
Jasper, you were
like a special star to us, a falling star that brightened our lives
for a brief moment, only to disappear into the endless night and
become one of the beautiful twinkling stars that light up the midnight
sky. One day, our
stars will join with yours and we will become one with you and the
universe.
Jasper’s Uncle
Ian would like to read “Do not be afraid”
Do
not be afraid
Do
not stand at my grave and weep
I
am not there, I do not sleep.
I
am a thousand winds that blow,
I
am the diamond glint on the snow.
I
am the sunlight on the ripened grain,
I
am the gentle autumn rain.
When
you awake in the morning hush
I
am the swift, uplifting rush
of
quiet birds in circling flight,
I
am the soft starlight at night,
Do
not stand at my grave and weep
I
am not there – I do not sleep.
Love is something
that we cannot measure, but we can see where it doesn't exist and we
can see where it does. We
may not be able to touch it, but we can feel it and we can see it in
action every day. I have
no doubt that Jasper would have felt the love that surrounded him from
his mum and dad, their mums and dads, brothers and sisters, cousins,
friends, neighbours and all the wonderful staff at Southmead who made
it possible for Ann and Pete to have those special days with their
son.
Ann and Pete have
chosen Wonderful World by Louis Armstrong, because it represents the
joy they felt when they first discovered they were expecting a baby,
and the delight they experienced when Jasper was born.
Music:
Wonderful World
By
Louis Armstrong
Mike an Julie Smee have
written a poem especially for Jasper and Mike is going to read it for
us now:
Tiny
Hands and Tiny Feet
Tiny
hands and tiny feet
the
warmest hearts you’d ever meet,
The
smiling faces full of joy
privileged
to meet this tiny boy,
The
proudest parents full of pride
A
life has touched us deep inside,
Your
tiny bonnet keeps you warm
in
your small house safe from harm,
We’re
all not far we’re close instead
we
chart your progress on the web,
Your
tiny hands as soft as silk
it’s
time to drink some of mum’s milk,
Father
cuddles his tiny son
is
this battle almost won?
But
now you fly with birds on high
there
is no need for us to cry,
The
greatest strength the strongest will
we
all feel you are with us still,
We
feel your presence on the breeze
and
see your smile in falling leaves,
We
hear your song when birds sing bright
at
break of day and fall of night,
The
warmest hearts you’d ever meet
Tiny
hands and tiny feet.
Pete
Rowley has written and recorded a song he wrote especially for Jasper.
Music:
Eternal Child
By
Pete Rowley
Jasper's dad,
Pete, has written a poem for Jasper, and his friend David Cruickshank
will read it for him:
Just
Ask Jasper
Written
by Peter Lockett
Read
by David Cruickshank
How
can someone so small
teach
us such depth
teach
us so much about ourselves?
How
can someone so small
let
us feel such highlights of pain
whilst
providing such extremes of happiness?
How
can someone so small
Show
us such depth in friendship
and
bring us all together?
How
can someone so small
show
such strength and purpose
and
impress the greatest of intellectuals?
How
can someone so small
extract
such love
and
achieve so much?
How
can someone so small
teach
us such humility
by
leading the way?
Just
ask Jasper.
Music:
Father to Son
By
Phil Collins
In a moment I am
going to ask you to have a little silence so you can all remember
Jasper in your own way.
Silence
Some of the most
precious things in this world are the smallest. But not even the most priceless diamond ever discovered could
compare to this tiny soul whose very existence meant so much to so
many. When Ann and Peter
named him Jasper, they knew they were naming him after a beautiful
gemstone, but didn’t realise that it would have been his birthstone
if he had gone to term.
The ancients
revered Jasper as sacred, and wore it close to their hearts.
Your Jasper will always be close to your hearts.
The Native American Indians believed blue Jasper connected them
with the after-world, just as the love you have for your Jasper now
connects you to wherever he is.
One variety of
Jasper is said to heighten one's appreciation of the joys and delights
of living, your Jasper certainly did that.
Another is said to help us accept responsibility and learn
patience. Yet another
variety, called Picture Jasper which is one of the most expensive
gemstones, is said to emit an energy which promotes the spiritual
affinity to achieve perfect accord between humanity and nature and
brings people together. Your
Jasper did all of that, and more, in just three and a half weeks.
He really was a little gem, rightly held in a Lockett.
I know both Pete
and Ann would like me to express their immense gratitude to their
family and friends for all their support, and especially for the
dedication of all the staff at the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at
Southmead.
Without their
devotion, help and expertise, it is doubtful that Jasper would have
survived as long as he did.
They do superb work, not just with babies, but with their
parents and families as well, and Ann and Peter have asked me to
request donations to help them continue the leading edge research that
enables them to save the lives of more and more babies each year.
Please join us for
the final part of the ceremony and follow Ann and Peter as they carry
Jasper's body to the burial site, where Ann’s cousin, Josette Crane
will read a prayer she wrote for Jasper.
A
Prayer for Jasper
By
Josette Crane
Loving,
heavenly Father
You
have made us in your own image and likeness.
We
thank you for Jasper
For
the love and tears that we shared together.
We
commend him now into your loving hands
Give
us comfort and peace in the midst of our sorrow
As
we cherish the memories that can never be taken from us.
We
thank you that Jasper is free from pain and suffering
and
is at peace with you.
Amen
Jasper, as we say
farewell and cover your casket with these beautiful gifts of nature,
we honour your courage, we honour your determination, and we honour
your spirit, but most of all we honour the love you brought us. As we say farewell to you now, remember always that you will
be loved and cherished forever. And
may the tree we intend to plant in your memory grow tall and strong
and spread its branches far and wide and provide a refuge for all the
birds and other creatures who seek its protection from the
elements.
Josette
"As
we each think of Jasper
Let
us focus on our love for him………"
Music:
Love is all Around
By
Wet Wet Wet
Thank
you. |