For Emily

To:  Thomas Joseph, Crossword Puzzle Designer

Dear Mr. Joseph:

While attempting to solve one of your puzzles published in the Classified Section of the Daily Record, I came to the clue for 29-Across: a five-letter word meaning a “playful sprite.”  I was quite surprised when my ready answer did not work.  Obviously, Mr. Joseph, you never met EMILY.  Your loss…for if you had, you would know that she embodied the description.

And might I provide several other clues which may help you in envisioning EMILY:

Princess warrior

Joyful prankster

Bold adventurer

Fearless flyer

Swimmer with dolphins

Laughing eyes

Endearing smile

Mischievous elf

Silly face maker

Delightful poetess

And serious lover of the color turquoise, fiddle music, shrimp and pasta, mint chocolate chip ice cream and all things PIXIE (the correct answer to 29-Across, by the way).

Yesterday was Emily’s 14^th birthday.  Instead of celebrating such a joyous occasion with her family and friends, Emily was quite busy soaring on angel wings to explore the sublime and never-ending wonders of Heaven.  Diagnosed with Ewing’s sarcoma of the skull/brain in 2009, Emily courageously fought the good fight, undergoing two surgeries, 14 rounds of chemotherapy, six weeks of proton beam radiation and one blessed year of remission before her passing on January 26, 2012. Her memorial service was a glorious celebration, filled with laughter, tears, stories, prayer and song, and a final sprinkling of pixie dust over all her hundreds of admirers.

I do pray that you’ll be joining Emily in heaven…you can’t miss her.  She’ll be peeking around the Almighty’s throne, humming a tune and making a funny face at you!

Sincerely,

Debby Beneze

P.S.  I’ve included a copy of one of Emily’s poems…Enjoy!

SMILE

By Emily Grace Wilson

The sunshine is walking with me today,

Everything is bright.

The sun beats down at 100 degrees

Makes me wanna smmmiiiiiiillle.

I sit down on the bench outside, making silly faces!!
But there's just one thing missing.
Oh Smile! Come on now! SMILE!
That's it now! SMILE! Smile with me!
Yaaaaa! Smile with me! Yaaaaa!
Du-du-du-du-du-du-du

Angel in training