It's the first day of spring and the flowers in my front beds are blooming. This week they really just came up out of no where and opened up to the world. I couldn't resist sharing them with you.
As I mentioned in my post "I Spy Something..." my Mother helped me plant these flowers last fall. It was really special to me to be able to spend that time with her. Although I spent most of the time watching her plant these flowers since I was recovering from surgery, it was just nice to sit and catch up. These days it's pretty rare that we get time together, just the two of us. While we were together she told me a story about one of her fondest memories of me as a little girl. She also told me how she told herself at that moment that she had better remember it. While she said this I was thinking the same thing about watching her plant these flowers. I thought to myself, you have to remember this, don't let this memory slip away. And lucky for me, I have a beautiful reminder. Each spring, when these flowers bloom, I'll think about that weekend with my Mom and how we planted these together.
Another memory that the flowers in our yard bring, is that of Speed Racer's Grandfather. He planted most of these flowers, and since I've moved here I've tried very hard to maintain them. But he must have used the front flower beds for annuals because they were empty before we planted bulbs in them. Last night though, Speed Racer turned to me as we walked by them in twilight, and said "My Grandfather would have loved to see those flowers, they're really nice. You did a wonderful job." That meant the world to me. When you move into a house that was owned by a family member it's hard to balance the "This is now your house" and the "This holds lots of memories." So when I look out at my front yard and see the flowers, it just makes me smile. I just look out and see Speed Racer's Grandfather, and his love for nature; my Mother and I, and the bond that we have; and our future...small little children picking flowers in the front yard. These are the best parts of home ownership: dreaming, making memories, and keeping memories alive.
