Song of Remembrance of Heroic Kaelan Palmer Paton (Jan 6, 1993 to June 16, 2009)

After school their group headed to the river
Trusting all to the life giver
To keep them safe as they jumped and swam
Celebrating summer and ways to win.

Yet whitewater trapped three boys.
Kaelan hand-signalled "9-1-1" amidst loud noise.
Kaelan saved John and Richie by reaching out a hand,
Skillfully and bravely while barely on land.

But to save the third he'd have to go farther,
Testing his power like his daring father.
Kaelan gave his all to save the day,
Fighting to get Frankie out of the water.

Yet the two suddenly went under,
near the falls of fury and thunder.
Somehow Frankie came back up above,
yet Kaelan was guided to a new realm of love.

Then on a rope Skip came like an angel,
Putting a halo around Frankie who was fragile.
Swept apart briefly by rushing waters,
Skip then lifted Frankie up, losing no others.

Though the chances were bleak, 
Folks searched for Kaelan for a week.
Then a trainman spotted the teen hero
near the Covered Bridge,
A place he loved and with a message to give:

Life is like a bridge to gently cross
Between birth and death we all feel loss.
But the gift of love is ours to give,
In how we die and how we live.

You're beautiful like a sparking jewel. 
Treating folks well is a magical tool.
Use your words to help put down the swords
Walk in peace and courage with honest words.

A new day dawns every morning.
Mortal life can end without warning.
Yet our love and spirit may move up and out,
Healing and helping many as our final shout.

Kaelan's love is growing stronger
From a realm in which we linger longer
Still one day we will close our eyes to all we've been part of
To join in with the love that comes from above.