If Heaven Wasn't So Far Away

Alayna Vivian Goetz

Alayna, Tessa's cousin, would have been 1 today.  Unfortunately, God had other plans and called Alayna to heaven only 5 hours after she was born.  So, today was a very bitter sweet day.

Today we celebrated Alayna's life by having lunch and cake and ice cream.  I was so excited to be able to help decorate Alayna's birthday cake.  Living so far away, I feel helpless a lot because I'm not there to help my sister through the grieving process.  Decorating the cake made me feel like I was helping, even if it was in a small way.

Ever since Alayna's death, rainbows have been a symbol to us of her being with us and watching over us.  I think it came from the song by the Band Perry called If I Die Young.  Anyway, we decided to decorate the cake with a rainbow.  I think it turned out pretty good.


We also sent balloons to heaven to Alayna.  The kids (Kaedin, Braylin, and Tessa) all colored pictures of rainbows to send to her, and Jodie and Paul both wrote her letters. 

What I wouldn't give to hold her just one time and tell her how much we love her and miss her.  We tell Tessa about her all the time.  Today, Tessa even led the group in singing Happy Birthday to her cousin.  In my head the two of them would have grown up being the best of friends and would have gotten into lots of mischief together.  If only Heaven Wasn't so Far Away.                                 

Balloons to Heaven