My uncle Arnold Oliver Byrnes born in Australia on 30 August 1913 passed away on 12 January 2013
Aged 99 he died just 5 days after his wife Dorothy to whom he was married an amazingly happy 79 years.
Her ashes were joined to his grave and resting place back to the flourishing seaside town of Ballina, in NSW. He had left instructions to be buried in Ballina which had happy memories to complement the Byrnes ancestral roots. My paternal grandparents were immigrants from Croydon in England who settled in Ballina which became a favorite holiday destination for my parents and me.
At the service a wonderful evocative poem was included by granddaughter Jenna Kenney which is reproduced hare:
My love
I sit and think about our history and life
But you’ve gone away now my beloved wife
I replay our scenes inside my head
The laughter and love, as my tears are shed
How lucky we were for our family and friends
For all of our years together, my beautiful best friend
You smile, your laughter, all the stories you told
The dances we shared, your resilience untold
Our treasured girls, how proud we were and though
the years have passed, that gift has not blurred
The pain in my heart, my best t friend, my wife
My yesterday and today, you were my life
I will see you again, my Dorothy Byrnes
But until then and now, my heat breaks as it yearns.
Little did we know how quickly that would be, but we
are together now my love, just as it should be …….
Written by Jenna Kenney
