Dearest friends and loved ones,

It is almost one week since we bade farewell to our beloved and precious daughter and sister Melisse.  One long week filled with disbelief, numbness, questions, and excruciating pain.  Her absence creates an awful void in our lives.  Our hearts and minds are reluctant to concede that she has left us, never to return again.  Our eyes occasionally dart hopefully to the back door, anticipating her entrance into the house; our ears strain attentively for that phone call to say she was running late, and our hearts pound profusely for that quick email to assure us that all was well.  Our selfish human nature desires her return to us.  But, no, we must now honor Melisse’s memory and comfort ourselves with the knowledge that she is in a far better place than we are.   No more suffering, no more anxiety, no more fear, no more darkness, and no more “stupid” pills.  She is at peace with our heavenly Father, who cares for and loves her even more than we do. 

The coming days, weeks, months, years will never be the same again without Melisse.  The pain and tears will diminish with time, so they tell us.  But we find consolation in this – that we can and will draw comfort and strength from our loving God, the great comforter and healer.  We pray the same for you also. 

In her brief life with us, she brought us all immense love and joy.  We will miss her impish grin, that twinkle in her eyes, her fun and philosophical take on life, her passion for people and things dear and important to her, her quiet intelligence and confidence, the inspiration she was to so many, the boundless energy she exuded on and off the soccer field, and the quick wit and humor that were so uniquely Melisse.  We will cherish her for her big and warm heart, her love for nature and all things “furry”, her love for her family and friends, her competitive spirit, her curious nature, and the goofy Melissey pranks.  Most of all, we will remember her for her courage and bravery in confronting the adversaries in her life.  We will hold on to these precious memories to help us heal.  We hope you do the same.

You have been so amazing and generous with your words of comfort, telephone calls, emails, cards, stories, flowers, memorials, and casseroles.   Dearest ones, we are beyond words to express our heartfelt gratitude and sincere appreciation for your overwhelming shower of love, care and support in this very difficult time.  We are truly blessed to have you in our lives.  Melisse would have felt the same. 

We ask that you stay in touch with us whenever possible.  We also would appreciate if you would please pass this message on to friends that we may have missed in this mailing.  Please write Eng at eb5@sbcglobal.net if you were present at any of the services but omitted to sign the guest registry.   Updates can be read at http://www.gracefw.org/MelisseBuland

Thank you again for the love and support you have shown us.  Melisse never forgot how much love there is in the world, and neither will we.

With Faith,

Eng, David, Alton, and Khim