Edie's brother Terry Blackburn was confined to a wheel chair and is her inspiration for the creation of the Edie Hand Foundation.
Edie Hand with her niece Kayla Poss, and her late brother Terry Blackburn during his last stay at Lakeshore Hospital in Birmingham.
The Last Christmas Ride
Written by Edie Hand and Buddy Killen
The scent of Christmas Day filled the air as the
morning
awoke us for our traditional ride
We saddled up our horses and celebrated
each other
my three brothers and I
Before the others awoke to share
presents around the Christmas Tree
We’d go riding singing our Christmas
carols - my three brothers and me
Joy and laughter filled the air as we ride
through time and space to our favorite place
Time has passed seasons have
changed as has the world we see
And now there are only three, since
one,
took his special ride that foggy Christmas Eve
When he lost control on a country
road and hit a fallen tree
Now he rides and sings his Christmas
Carols with angels by his side
An empty saddle and the three of us
will take our Christmas ride.
More years had come and gone
another Christmas Day was dawn
The second one took a ride
and, yes, he saw it coming
A speeding truck - a hit
head-on left an awful sight
Two empty saddles would ride on
when we took our Christmas ride
But faith kept us going though
it was often put to the test
Just when I thought it’s going to
be alright and I’d laid it all to rest
The strongest one the one that was
left, found his health began to fail
and over time he’d find
his life become a living hell
For years I gave to him the gift
of strength and a promise
that we would once again
take a Christmas ride
He’d mount his horse and hold
the reins as we rode side by side
Seasons have come and gone… bittersweet…
as he spoke with just his eyes
as if to say... The boys
are here… it’s time…
I held him in my arms…I cried…
as we took our last Christmas ride…
in our minds.