Ten years ago, on August 28, 2014, at 4:00 pm, the earthly life of my husband of 37 years, ended at St. Francis Hospice in Ewa Beach, Hawaii.

I had been preparing for this day for months, and published this post only a few minutes later.

Only Carl’s picture, no words, except for the dates 1945-2014. Carl never got to see the picture (above) which I chose as the memorial photo (sigh!) If you can believe this, I took this photo when we were at the Leipzig Zoo in Germany, some years before! In it, he has a crooked smile, and his glasses are skewed and awry. Yup, that’s Carl!

I also included a clip of Carl’s singing voice, “Music for awhile” by Henry Purcell.

This announcement was in today’s service leaflet at St. Mark’s Episcopal Church.

You might remember that the Sunday immediately following Carl’s death, I was substituting at St. Mark’s and remember hearing his name in the prayers. People were so supportive — I received over 500 sympathy cards and hundreds of emails and text messages.

And why did Father Paul Lillie choose the hymn HYFRYDOL for the Offertory today? How did he know this was the hymn we chose for our wedding 47 years ago? How did he know that Carl had written an alternate harmonization for the last verse? How did he know that I also chose this hymn to be sung at Carl’s memorial service? It’s uncanny.

Here’s a video clip from today’s Sunday service where Carl’s name is mentioned in the prayers, followed by the offertory proper chant, and then I play an introduction on HYFRYDOL by Jayne Southwick Cool. Listen for Carl’s joyous harmonization on verse 5, and especially that cool D major 7th chord on the word “redeemed!”

You might be interested in re-reading some of the old posts I wrote about Carl’s cancer journey.

Announcement of his illness
The next step in the journey

Words of comfort
Walking on water

The tributes pour in
With grateful hearts

Home Hospice Care
Home, James!

Carl’s last moments
Bach to the end

Announcement of his death
Carl Crosier, 1945-2014

List of funeral and memorial services
Services of remembrance

Newspaper obituary:
A story instead of an obituary

Father William’s homily at the funeral
A life of faith and music

Carl Crosier Requiem Service Booklet

Complete audio of the funeral service
Requiem

Reactions to the funeral service
Carl’s final gift

Tribute by Ken Peterson, Seattle Compline Choir member
Remembering Carl Crosier (1945-2014)

Evensong at St. Andrew’s Cathedral, August 31, 2014
Carl’s evensong and epitaph

Service at St. Andrew’s Priory
Remembering the Prime Minister

Song written for Carl’s retirement by Sandra Theunick
A Song for Carl

Carl’s epitaph
Gone but not forgotten

My lifelong friends, Frank and Sue Haas, are taking me out to dinner on Wednesday night and together we will celebrate Carl’s life among us. We all miss him terribly.