Quotes for everyone!

http://www.hospicenet.org/html/watch.html

"It is good to have a reminder of death before us, for it helps us to understand the impermanence of life on this earth, and this understanding may aid us in preparing for our own death."

Black Elk, Oglala Sioux

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No one knows where the Spirit World is.
The ancient people said that it is beyond the pines.
The pine trees are at the edge of the world,
and beyond them is the path of the winds.
The Spirit Way begins there at the edge of the world among the stars,
and the winds will tell the spirits of people where to find it.

What is Life?
It is the flash of a firefly in the night.
It is the breath of a buffalo in the wintertime.
It is the little shadow that runs across the grass and loses itself in the sunset.

Paul Goble Beyond The Ridge Plains Indian Tradition
Bradbury Press, 1989
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"O son of an enlightened family, what is called 'death' has now arrived, so adopt this attitude: 'I have arrived at the time of death, so now, by means of this death, I will adopt only the attitude of the enlightened state of mind, loving kindness and compassion, and attain perfect enlightenment... limitless as space.'"

Sogyal Rinpoche, The Tibetan Book Of Living And Dying
Tibetan Buddhism Harper San Francisco, 1992

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One day, I was sitting with Rodleigh, the leader of the troupe, in his caravan, talking about flying. He said, "As a flyer, I must have complete trust in my catcher, The public might think that I am the greatest star of the trapeze, but the real star is Joe, my catcher. He has to be there for me with split-second precision and grab me out of the air as I come to him in the long jump."

"How does it work?" I asked.

"The secret," Rodleigh said, "is that the flyer does nothing and the catcher does everything: when I fly to Joe, I have simply to stretch out my arms and hands and wait for him to catch me and pull me safely over the apron behind the catchbar."

"You do nothing!" I said, surprised.

"Nothing," Rodleigh repeated. "A flyer must fly, and a catcher must catch, and the flyer must trust, with outstretched arms, that his catcher will be there for him."

When Rodleigh said this with so much conviction, the words of Jesus flashed through my mind: "Father into your hands I commend my Spirit." Dying is trusting in the catcher. To care for the dying is to say, "Don't be afraid. Remember that you are the beloved child of God. He will be there when you make your long jump. Don't try to grab him; he will grab you. Just stretch out your arms and hands and trust, trust, trust."

Henri J. M. Nouwen A Roman Catholic Priest
Our Greatest Gift: A Meditation On Dying And Caring Harper, 1994