Thank You Cards: Khurram

The outpouring of love and support that my family and most notably my cousin-in-law Khurram has received since my cousin Melanie died has been overwhelming. Khurram and his daughter Aalia have received so many gifts and acts of kindness. Although etiquette does not require him to write Thank You notes for Sympathy gifts, Khurram decided he wanted to send everyone a Thank You note. Everyone is a group that is comprised of 400+ people. He was going to buy generic cards, but I offered to create something that was more personal.

This was a daunting, yet cathartic task. I combed through both Melanie and Khurram's facebook pages for just the right photos. I found this photo of Melanie from their Spain vacation and thought that it was perfect. Khurram wished to include this poem which they displayed at their wedding. Melanie had selected it to honor her father who had passed away a few months before their wedding.

She is Gone
You can shed tears that she is gone
Or you can smile because she has lived
You can close your eyes and pray that she will come back
Or you can open your eyes and see all that she has left
Your heart can be empty because you can’t see her
Or you can be full of the love that you shared
You can turn your back on tomorrow and live yesterday
Or you can be happy for tomorrow because of yesterday
You can remember her and only that she is gone
Or you can cherish her memory and let it live on
You can cry and close your mind, be empty and turn your back
Or you can do what she would want: smile, open your eyes, love and go on.
-David Harkins

Here is what I designed.

It is simple, but much more personal.

Prior to Melanie's death, I had planned on designing baby announcements as my gift. Since circumstances had changed, I created Thank You cards for Aalia that were based on my original design.