FIRST DAY LILY BLOOMS
Two visuals combined in an instant to trigger sadness and a smile today.
I'm sure you get solitications for donations from charities through the mail -- who doesn't? A trend in recent years has some charities sending you sheets of custom mailing labels with your name and return address. The hope is that you'll send a donation for this unsolicited "gift." (My policy is to discard the labels unless it's a charity I donate to.)
I was sorting my mail at my patio window. Such an envelope was addressed to Kathy, with her name printed over and over on 50 colorful mailing labels. A knife in the heart.
At that exact moment, I looked out the window and saw the first two day lily blooms of the season. I love day lilies; Kathy did too. I love driving along back roads in the summer and seeing that crazy orange glow in my peripheral vision.
But Kathy was the gardener, not me. For the second time since losing Kathy, the blooms have begun -- an unsolicited gift from my late wife.
But in her fashion, these day lilies are the rare red- and yellow-colored ones, not the common orange ones. I like orange best; Kathy liked yellow and red. (We disagreed on so many fundamentals.) Today's blooms were both yellow. So just in case I forget who it was who picked, planted and nurtured these particular day lilies, their color provides a loud hint.
I'm sure you get solitications for donations from charities through the mail -- who doesn't? A trend in recent years has some charities sending you sheets of custom mailing labels with your name and return address. The hope is that you'll send a donation for this unsolicited "gift." (My policy is to discard the labels unless it's a charity I donate to.)
I was sorting my mail at my patio window. Such an envelope was addressed to Kathy, with her name printed over and over on 50 colorful mailing labels. A knife in the heart.
At that exact moment, I looked out the window and saw the first two day lily blooms of the season. I love day lilies; Kathy did too. I love driving along back roads in the summer and seeing that crazy orange glow in my peripheral vision.
But Kathy was the gardener, not me. For the second time since losing Kathy, the blooms have begun -- an unsolicited gift from my late wife.
But in her fashion, these day lilies are the rare red- and yellow-colored ones, not the common orange ones. I like orange best; Kathy liked yellow and red. (We disagreed on so many fundamentals.) Today's blooms were both yellow. So just in case I forget who it was who picked, planted and nurtured these particular day lilies, their color provides a loud hint.
posted by Mark Voger at 10:44 PM
4 Comments:
that's nice, in a bittersweet way. Glad you're enjoying Kathy's lillies.
You will find your lost love in the water, the earth and the air you breathe ... forever. Every visual entity you see that reminds you of her will poignantly touch your soul. Hopefully, as time passes, the pain will turn into happier memories that only you, holding them close to your heart, can smile upon.
As for the yellow day lilies, she's just reminding you that she knows how lucky she was to have you in her life.
Thanks, friends.
Hi there,
I just found your blog, it was a great read! Just thought it may interest you to know, a while back i managed to find a british labels company who printed me some mailing labels for a really low price. If you are at all interested then it may be worth taking a look at their website.
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