I'm Free
Don't grieve for me, for now I'm free.

I took their hands when I heard them call.
I turned my back and left it all.
I could not stay another day,
To laugh, to love, to work or play.
Tasks left undone must stay that way,
I found my peace at the close of the day.

If my parting has left a void,
then fill it with remembered joys.
A friendship shared, a laugh, a kiss,
These are things I too will miss.

Be not burdened with times of sorrow,
I wish you the sunshine of tomorrow.
My life's been full, I savored much,
Good friends, good times, a loved ones touch.

Perhaps my time seemed all too brief,
Don't lengthen it now with undue grief.

Lift up your hearts and remember me.
The angels wanted me now; I've been set free.

i just randomly found this website,and its hit me hard. ive been sitting here for 20 minutes reading all about this. i cant imagine the feeling you must have within you everyday knowing he's gone forever.

ive been crying, for taylor,for you,and for his family+friends. its so horrible how no one helped him, how that firefighter would not let anyone help him,and that if they had let people help
him,he could still possibly be alive. i think thats the hardest realization,that if people could've just helped him,everything would be okay,and you wouldnt feel the hurt you do everyday like you do.your dream/vision is just heartbreaking,and
same with the fact that the first time you ever said goodbye without hugs and kisses would be your last goodbye.its saddening that when that finally happened,it was the last time you would ever get to say goodbye,but at least you
spoke with him a few hours later.

to wrap this up,
i just want you to know my heart and soul goes out to you.
i respect your will and strength towards the situation.
it must be so hard to see your child die before you,
its unnatural,and not right.

please know that ill forever keep taylor in my mind now that ive heard of this
tragic event.its unforgettable.

my heart goes out to you,
Rebecca.

Yore boy mother...

Yore Boy, yore once infant, mother.....has returned to the FATHER..

. THINKER.......a DREAMER.....your coat of shiny-armour...

bushy-eye brows.....angelic face.....a Charmer.....

did his bit...what he could....gave ya respect like a good son should,

you made him grow.....and how ...only you would know....

watered the plant.....with yer life blood-flow....

Apple of yer eye, let out a deep sigh,

dying while we live.....living while we die....

Grieve not ailing mother.....give back what you had been given!

Taylors` sprouted downy-wings, he`s soaring upto heaven!

This is an absolutely beautiful site for an even more beautiful son. Taylor had to be an exceptional young man. I lost my son too at the young age of 16 in an automobile accident. My Cory was a lot like your Taylor. Always happy, always loving, never ashamed to hug his dad and I or tell us he loved us in front of family and friends. This website shows your love for Taylor and his love for his family and life just as Cory was. Maybe our two Angels are best friends in Heaven now as they both were so much alike. If you ever get a chance to visit Cory's website to see the resemblence go to cdo16.tripod.com. With love, thoughts and Prayers to you and your family. 

Freck and Karen Otwell

hi a wonderful site ,

i lost my son aged 18 and think of him everyday.

he was like taylor a lovely person

i ask why everyday

so many unanwsered questions

take care

thinking of you..

x

Taylor is such a handsome boy and I am so sorry for your loss. My daughter Sara Hennarichs passed away in an ATV accident in Sept. of 2003. 

I came across Taylors website and started reading some of the beautiful tributes you wrote and just had to write to tell you that I have experienced some of those "feelings of knowing" that you spoke about. 

Not to the extent that you have but I had those same "feelings of doom" for months before her accident. I truely believe that my soul knew that I didn't have much time left with her. 

I wrote about my experience in her tributes on page 7 called "All these thoughts keep running through my head..." I am sure there was more that happened that I don't
remember. 

Just thought I would let you know that you are not alone in your experience. I have also received many wonderful signs from Sara. You have created a beautiful tribute for Taylor and I know that he is still very much a part of your life with all those signs he sends you. 
Thanking you for sharing
Taylor and your experiences with us... 

Hi Lori,
I came across this website while looking for current Angel of Hope statues. I am in the process of having one made in my town. 

I write to you with sadness in my heart, as I read the story of your son's life. My son, Logan, died July 30, 2005. He was two.
 He also drowned. 
He got out of our house without us realizing,
and we found him in our pool. 
The story of your son has touched me in a way that
words cannot express. I will pray for you this holiday season and I know our sons will watch us from the heavens above. Your statue is unforgettable. 
I know your pain. 
You are not alone. 
Would love to talk to you, if you feel up to it. 
I will never forget.
Love,
Robyn Zimmerman
Mother of Christopher Logan Zimmerman March 18, 2003- July 30, 2005

Hi Lori, you don't know me, and I don't know you, but I feel a connection to you and especially to Taylor. He reminds me so much of my little brother Robby. Robby is a great kid, full of energy, love and life. He loves camping and being
with his friends, but above all, he loves his family. As I read about Taylor, and I learn of the depth a 17 year old can have, I am so touched as I realize how precious he is.
 
I believe you are right, if you haven’t lost a child, you don’t know what it’s like. I have lost two babies (a girl and then a boy), and it still tears me apart 5 years later. I have no idea what it would be like to loose your 17 year old friend and child. I only knew my babies a short while and the love that grew was immense.
I now have two little boys (2 & 4 today actually, they share birthdays).
 I don’t know if it is of any comfort, but I have taught my boys from the very beginning that if someone is in trouble, you RUN to help them… you don’t stand idle by while the world falls in on them. 
My 4 year old will run to help someone who has fallen down and I realize what an impact he will have on the world.

 It brings tears to my eyes as I realize the cowardly words of an
ignorant firefighter would have fallen on deaf ears of my child, I know at the tender age of 4, my son would have jumped in to help yours. 

I would love to send a gift to Taylor. I am somewhat of an artist and it is really on my heart to create something for him… please let me know if that would be okay and where to send it. 

Thank you for your love, compassion and your desire to keep your son alive in our hearts. 
You are a good mom! God bless you and remember you will see your son again!

Chelle Anderson

I'm very sorry for your loss. Your son seemed like he was a very unique and wonderful person.

The world should have more people like your son, and it wouldn't be in the state its in.

I saved this webpage in my favorites folder and whenever i go to it i say a prayer for you and your family.

The webpage is a beautiful rememberance to a special human being.

May God Bless you, your son and your family, now and forever.

Amen.

Congratulations to Brooke!!!

Luke is over the top for next year in Stugo. He is oh so looking forward to working with Brooke and doing really great things for DMHS. 

Max has the fondest memories of working with Taylor in Stugo and I am quite sure that Luke and Brooke will certainly create a similar bond. 

Looking forward to watching from the sidelines. Congratulations again, Brooke!!!!
 
With Love, 
the kanters

Your son was a beautiful baby and young man. 

I just want to tell you that this has helped me so much and I cry for you and your loss. 

These words don't do justice. 

I wish I could I really hug you and cry with you and talk with you for hours. 

where you wrote about what is normal after losing a child helped me so much. I have felt so alone and lost for what seems like forever and it's only been 9 months since my babygirl left us. 

It helps to know someone really understands all the feelings I have that make me crazy everyday. 

I am sending my love to you and I will pray for you. Thank you so much.

as my senior year comes to a wrap i've been asked to write many letters reflecting my 4 years in high school and to remember what i've learned. and no matter how many different prompts i am given i always end up referring to the life lessons that i've learned from Taylor. 

so today i'm just remembering, reflecting, and realizing.


Life wont stop just because you want it to...
so keep on keepin on before life swallows you whole.



remembering you Taylor.
always in my heart
always in my prayers

always with me...



<3

Dear Taylor's family,

I came across the tribute site to your son completely by accident, or perhaps it was on purpose!

I never had the opportunity to meet your son, but it is obvious that he was a very special young man.   

I spent a long time looking at this site and was truly moved.  The gift you have given us all with his memory is remarkable, and I admire your courage, and determination to live every day and keep his memory alive.  

Thank you for sharing Taylor with the world.

-Samantha E.

I will hug my children a little tighter. I can't even begin to comprehend the terrible pain Taylors death has brought into your life. I lost my brother April 12, 2000 and it has been so hard...but to lose your child, it's just so much harder. 
This is what every parent fears most...I watched as my parents buried my brother and the horrible sadness that will always hang over their life, and mine. 
When I dream about my brother I am so happy to see him and I want the dream to last forever....but then morning comes and I wake up and realize it was only a dream. It's like losing him again and the grief starts again.  Shortly after he died I wanted to die....I ended up in a mental hospital for 32 days and spend the next several years drugged out of my mind.  
People always say stuff like, "well he's in a better place." and this is suppose to be a comfort. It's never made me feel any better.....I want to hold, feel, touch, talk to and just be with my brother again. I want to see the joy come back into my parents life. I want my brother and no words of "comfort" anyone can say will ever take that longing away. The only iota of comfort I have is knowing that one day I will see him again. And you will see Taylor again in a place where death has no place...and they will never be taken from us again.  An eternal place. 
Thanks for sharing Taylor with me.
God Bless.

I sit here and think that in a few short months, it will be two years since Taylor has passed. What I have learned is that everything goes back to normal. Except the family. And the smaller the family, the harder it is to recover.

Children are G-d's medicine. They help to take the suffering away. I can say with a full heart that my daughter Brooke has been my antidote and without her I'm afraid I would not have survived this long. Yes, losing a child is that painful. I have been lucky to be able to express my thoughts and feelings on paper. I hope my forthcoming book will help others, and guide those of you that have not lost a child in your support of the bereaved parent.

Although there are so many emotions experienced (and at a very intense level) the one I'd like to focus on right now is the yearning. When your child dies and time has passed, one of the hardest things to cope with is the yearning. To me, the yearning has been the hardest part. I yearn so desparately to see my son again. To hear his sweet voice telling me a joke or hearing him giving encouragement to a friend over the telephone. I yearn to see his thick dark blonde hair and I yearn to walk up behind him like I'd done so many times before and ruffle his hair. To run my hands through his thick hair and announce to him that he is in need of a haircut. And to watch in amazement as his hair would grow back nearly as fast as it was cut off! I yearn to put my arms around him and hug him. To snuggle with my baby boy (even at 17) and tell him he was my greatest joy. To wrap my small arms around his strong shoulders and tell him that even though he was physically stronger than I was, that I would always be there to take care of him. I'd be there to make things better for him. I'd be his rock, I'd be there no matter what. Because as his mom, I was still strong enough to take care of him and always would be.

 I yearn to smell his sweat after a basketball game and to wash his uniform with lots of extra laundry detergent to make sure it was clean and smelled fresh for him for the next time he had to wear it. I yearn to see him make a "concoction" that he and his father made together with the blender. Running to the store to purchase different kinds of liquid drinks to mix together and to dare each other to go a step further and add in another ingredient. I miss the roar of the blender, the loudness that would rattle the stillness of a lazy sunday afternoon.

I miss having his friends coming over and hanging out. Just hanging out and being boys. Playing video games, laughing about girls and teachers. Watching how intensely they got into the video games and me, the mom; coming into his room to hug and kiss him. In the middle of the game, and Taylor would try to play around me so he wouldn't lose a point. But he never once told me to leave. He knew it'd only be a second to give him a quick hug and kiss. And all his friends would look and and smile, because they knew he was embarrassed, but they knew that their moms probably would be doing the same thing to them if they were at their house. Boys are magical. Son's are magical. My son was magical.

I could go on, but it hurts too much to think about it all. How much I'm missing. How much I will miss, and how much it hurts. People who haven't lost a child, especially those in the medical community think that parents linger in our pain because we are sad about all the lost opportunities with our child. True, but that isn't nearly what hurts us the most. Nor is it the hardest thing to cope with. For example, having a child who is severely injured and can no longer function, will no longer be able to fulfill all their dreams for the future. But the parents would rather have their child sick and disabled than dead. Even if there are all those lost oppotunities to deal with -- they still have their child alive. It is better than having a dead child. Because they have that we don't have -- hope.

When your child is dead, there is no hope for a cure. No hope for a miracle, no hope that they will recover. There is no hope. That is the difference. As a bereaved parent we have lost our hope. And that is what makes the yearning so difficult to handle. Because you know there is no hope in ever seeing your child again. And so you yearn. And the yearning becomes stronger each day and eventually becomes overwhelming. But you go on, especially if you have other children, because loving a child who is already alive is such a gift. So you put the yearning for your dead child into your back pocket and carry it with you wherever you travel.

The yearning never goes away. It eats at you like a pirranha nibbling on his meal made from your heart. Bit by bit, the yearning overtakes the constant crying and the urge to die. But the feeling never leaves you and you learn to once again hide this strong emotion from the rest of the world for fear you may make them feel uncomfortable. The yearning is the hardest part to handle.