...just where the sea and sky come down to mingle...

Dear friends,

It is with great sadness that we note the passing of my mother. To those who knew her, please take a moment to remember and reflect on the love and life of Angela Carol Bauer (December 12, 1957 - July 18, 2012).

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At 10:45pm (Pacific) on the evening of July 17, 2012, Pearl and I sat together in ritual and said our goodbyes to my mother, sending strength and peace of mind her way. Upon the conclusion of the ritual, we received word that she had just passed away in her sleep and was finally at rest.

We wanted to take a moment to thank each one of you--our friends, family and community--so very much for your unending support and kind words throughout these last six years as she bravely fought for another month, another day, another moment. We consider ourselves so lucky to have had her in our lives and also to have you in our lives now.

We flew into Boston last weekend for her service and it was wonderful to see how many friends, old and new, were there to celebrate her life. At the burial, as the pastor declared that she was finally free of the cancer that had been attacking her for so long, a large and colorful butterfly took flight, hovered momentarily in front of the pastor and then flew in amongst the watching crowd. It was as if she were saying that she was with us still and would be forevermore.

Goodbye, Mom. You will be much missed, though we will carry you in our hearts and thoughts always.

Christopher and Pearl

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A reading from the church service (from Victor Hugo/Bishop Brent)

I am standing upon the seashore. A ship at my side spreads her white sails to the morning breeze and starts for the blue ocean. She is an object of beauty and strength. I stand and watch her until at length she hangs like a speck of white cloud just where the sea and sky come to mingle with each other.
Then some one at my side says: ‘There, she is gone!’
‘Gone where?’
Gone from my sight. That is all. She is just as large in mast and hull and spar as she was when she left my side and she is just as able to bear her load of living freight to her destined port.  Her diminished size is in me, not in her. And just at the moment when some one at my side says: There, she is gone!’ there are other eyes watching her coming, and other voices ready to take up the glad shout: ‘Here she comes!’

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Bauer, Angela C.
Angela Carol Bauer of Westwood died Wednesday, July 18, 2012 following a 6-year battle with chondrosarcoma, a form of bone cancer. Raised in Newton, MA, Angela devoted her life to caring and advocating for children. A mother of 5, she and her husband Chris were foster parents for 13 years, and very proud adoptive parents. In addition she worked in a variety of child-care settings, and for 10 years ran a family daycare from her home in Newton. She succeeded in her life's mission of making every child she cared for feel like a part of her family. She was, simply, a mom at heart. She is survived by her husband Chris, her children Christopher, Tanya (Rossner), Jessica, Kelvin, and Diana. She leaves her parents Ralph and Barbara Zani of Boston, and her siblings Susanna (Suggs), William, Felicia, Anthony, Nathan, Monica, Nicholas, and Alexandra (Trudo). A Funeral Service will be held at the Congregational Church of Needham, 1154 Great Plain Ave Needham, on Saturday July 21st at 11:30am, to be followed by a burial service at the New Westwood Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Heifer International, one of Angela's favorite charities. For obit, directions or to share a memory of Angela please visit www.eatonandmackay.com