Thinking of my mom and my dad

~~~

This is in the little garden spot I have made for Mom in my back yard.  The rose bush I have planted there is blooming!

Isn't it strange how the sorrow never leaves you after losing a loved one ~ your mother or father ~ a child ~ a lover? Losing anyone close to you, no doubt is hard!

I have only experienced losing my mom and dad of the ones closest to me.
(Oh-many others who I loved dearly I have lost also... and it always hurts)

We lost Dad at a much too young age (59)and at a time when I was a young wife and mother and immersed in that all consuming role. Of course it hurt terribly, just the same...and through the years I've felt a sadness that he never knew some of his grand kids; only one of my three kids were old enough to remember him.(Chis was 4-Tammy was 1 and Tina came 2 months after Dad's passing!)

  We had Mom another 40 years, to age 94! (Mom knew her Great-Grands and even some Great-Great Grands!) All those years and memories are added on...Somehow it makes it harder~not that my daddy wasn't loved as much as Mom...but I think my circumstances when Dad left us and the time of my life that I was in ~ my age (23) ~ sort of served as a cushion between me and my grief.

Truth be told, though, I often dream of both my parents~(Dad having been gone almost 47 years...and Mom will be 8 years in Jan 2011!)

And even though the memories and dreams make me sad I'm glad I have them.

After seeing the stepping stone in the garden today Mom has been in my thoughts more than usual. Here are some of the little things of her's  that I have on a shelf in my family room.

Mom and her 5 'kids!'
The doves were hers.

I gave Mom this when Charles and I were first married!

Mom had this fascination of exotic places- especially Hawaii-not that she ever traveled to any of them. I was happy when I found this little plate for her, many,many years ago!

She donated to this organization (Salesian missions) for a  very long time and  loved these little books  of inspirational poems.  She gave us these all through the years...I have many among my poem books but this one was in her room and it ended up here with a few  of her other things.

A gift from my mom to me.

Our Family

(Love you always, Mom and Dad)

Junie