Dear colleagues,

 

It is with sadness that I inform you about the death of our dear colleague
Gonneke van Veldhuizen-Staas.

For many years, she was quite active in this group as well and many of you
may know her name or may have met her personally.

 

Around Christmas, she fell ill. She was home for a few weeks before she was
admitted to the hospital where her condition deteriorated.

She died on January 17th and yesterday we had a beautiful farewell.

On the Fb-page 'Lactogenesis II' I wrote the following:

"For our dear and unique colleague
<https://www.facebook.com/groups/8310342238/user/1078791902/?__cft__%5b0%5d=
AZW7H0lweJtfyL4X_LnIi8Q2YoRjwEprwwuPytrcjFmYjEjFyLz9A1NMRMSzLtCsNl4B-Nv3D_aS
LBsD_m56XYOTXrky7358_NHOrwnszCCXHcl35fjfJWFKsjFNa4n_zoSHuVn5ojd8nimlyyHn39iC
X5pv0YoPYUri_5VOKfRF1ZoQO5KhrV5Cdjo4tEA0Ho0&__tn__=-%5dK-R> Gonneke Van
Veldhuizen-Staas who passed away last week and for whom we will have a
commemorative gathering in the coming hours, I wrote the poem below. May her
beautiful professional inheritance keep feeding and inspiring us and may her
loved ones be comforted by all she gave them. "

 

I added a little artwork containing a photo I took and the following poem I
wrote (seven couplets of seven lines - hope the e-mail programme keeps the
layout):

 

-0-0-0-

 

Passage

 

Amidst a world in great distress

we look for consolation

for honest souls and open hands

for hopeful confirmation

that what we do and feel is real

that gently, safely we can peel

those layers of starvation

 

We crave abundance, full and pure

a rainbow in the sky

a sacred refuge, safe and sure

and courage when we're shy

so that our energy can flow

can keep us warm and make us grow

with every step we try

 

Our lives will always change

we gain and lose, we read the cues

we build and rearrange

and through it all we find our guides

the ones who teach us novel views

who meekly, bravely help us cruise

our quest against the tides

 

The ties we forge, the bonds we form

create a strong foundation

to feed and nurture, shift the norm

restore the application

of sparkling authenticity

holistic synchronicity

life's joyful celebration

 

Our precious vulnerability

both human and divine

is full of possibility

if only we entwine

its beauty with our sheltering heart

our love's protection from the start

that healthy bottom line

 

Your times has come

to turn the wheel

to join a new dimension

You still are here

what was will be

and we will guard and mention

your name, your legacy

 

Our lives will always change

we grief and mourn, we catch the blues

we pause and rearrange

when fate or sorrow steals our guides

the ones who taught us novel views

whose wealthy gift we cherish through

the passage of the tides

 

-0-0-0-

 

The Dutch breastfeeding field will greatly miss her, but most of all, of
course, her husband, children (in law) and her grandchildren will have to
find a new balance now that such an authentic matriarch has gone.

 

Sincerely,

 

Marianne Vanderveen-Kolkena IBCLC, MSc

Lactation Consultant and Medical Anthropologist/Sociologist

 


             ***********************************************

Archives: http://community.lsoft.com/archives/LACTNET.html
To reach list owners: [log in to unmask]
Mail all list management commands to: [log in to unmask]
COMMANDS:
1. To temporarily stop your subscription write in the body of an email: set lactnet nomail
2. To start it again: set lactnet mail
3. To unsubscribe: unsubscribe lactnet
4. To get a comprehensive list of rules and directions: get lactnet welcome