Roses From My Valentine, Ed

My sweetheart brought me a beautiful bouquet of roses and orchids for Valentine's Day. He ordered the bouquet as a replacement for the bouquet that was presented to me in Hawaii on the night that he received the OPASTCO Chairman's Award, an award that he richly deserves.

The flowers stayed behind in our hotel room when we flew home to Michigan.

How thoughtful of Ed to bring me another bouquet, just like the one we left behind. Even now, more than a week after Valentine's Day, six of the roses and several orchid sprays decorate the dining room table.

I love you, honey. Thank you for a very thoughful gift!

My Mother, Vallanee Rose

I found this lovely photo of my Mom today. It was in a directory on my laptop that's labelled "scrapbook." I must have saved it there when I was plowing through CDs of photos sometime in the last two years.

Mom died in January 2007 so the winter months always seem reminders to me of how empty the world gets when someone precious to you departs. I call it the "hole in the universe" feeling -- that feeling that there's some big void that you know used to be filled and now is a hollow, empty space that still echoes with sorrow.

Mom's middle name is "Rose" and here she is, posing with a bouquet of roses that's placed in front of one of my sister Mary Beth's quilts, this being one of her colorful cat quilts. This photo was taken at Patrick and Mary Beth's home in February of 2005 when we were visiting Wisconsin with Liesl after our first grandchild Max was born.

The roses, the cats which Mom loved, just knowing how she and Dad have been cared for lovingly by my sister and her husband, seeing Mom look so content -- well, all of this is a tender reminder of how good life really is.