Kathleen Schatz Bigelow, of Bedford, MA, passed away September 26, 2020, at home. She was born on August 23, 1947 in Washington, DC. "Tiger" by kathleen bigelow I wish I were a tiger, and I could run in the savannah as God wanted. I would look to the stars, and feel my freedom and destiny, accepting my beauty and speed, my stealth lying in the grasses in my cunning and tigerness. I am a tiger, and I dream of being free, out in the grasses feeling the sun and the wind ruffling my coat. "I know you're a tiger", someone said to me once, and smiled knowingly and sweetly. My stripes must have been visible, even in my human guise. You might even catch me purring, unaware, or that momentary look of wildness that would pass over my eyes, remembering when I was free, and ran and loved and was proud, and lived my life as tigers were meant to: dignified, strong, muscles rippling, serene in his place in the Universe. Kathy was a tiger, facing life with grace, positivity, and love. Nowhere was that more evident than in her three-and-a-half-year battle with lymphoma. Through a dire first diagnosis to remission, to a CNS recurrence last year when she was told she a had month to live to, again, remission, to a final bout this summer that simply was too much to fight. But fight she did, even to the end; she was a tiger. But she also understood life. From being one of the youngest female licensed pilots in Florida, to being a track star, to working her way through the University of Florida as a bartender with Tom Petty as the house band, to being a USO dancer, to getting a master's degree in psychology, Kathy always set her goals and accomplished them. But those are just things she did. What Kathy really was was the person anyone could come to, talk with, get perspective, and love and laughter. Kathy saw the world as an exciting puzzle and filtered it in a way that everyone knew was unique. Her husband and partner of 43 years, Marv Goldschmitt, was the luckiest of men to gain the wisdom of her intelligence and insight and the depth of her love. He had to share that because she loved everyone, and everyone loved her. She is also survived by her mother, Mary Sturgis, of New Smyrna Beach, FL. And she was a poet, unpublished by choice but creating work that moved and resonated with everyone who read her poems. It is her husband's ongoing commitment to share her work with the world, a world that needs so much healing. The poem above is how she saw herself in the world. The poem below, a commemoration of the 10th anniversary of 9/11, shows how deeply she felt the world and her compassion. It is both true and trite to say that someone will be missed but in Kathy's case, it is universally true, the universe she is now part of. Services will be private. A celebration of life will be held when conditions allow. Donations in her name can be made to Rosie's Place, A Sanctuary for Poor and Homeless Women, www.rosiesplace.org. Arrangements are under the care of Dee Funeral Home & Cremation Service of Concord. "Hope" by kathleen bigelow, 9/11/11 There is so much pain in this instant My pain others' pain surrounded by pain. Which pain is mine? Where am I? What is the line between my pain their pain? We are all struggling, All in pain, Except for the sleep-walkers, in a daze, Or those in a giddy dream. All are asleep, but when they awaken, it is either peace, or screaming. Maybe both. Moving through life, I awaken. I've screamed too. Peace beckons Breathing through the world of pain, Hope, Even if it is a Buddhist dream. Always hope, have faith In the God who supports you, loves you, As the bird with a broken wing. As an angel wraps her wings around you, Be comforted.