A Memory

On Memorial Day, I always remember my brother. He was a year older than me, but he died in 1973. He was a navigator/bombardier on an F-111.

I like to look at old photos and remember all the good times--and there were lots of them. The photo above shows me, my brother, and sister #1 riding on the lake behind our house. We had christened our little dinghy, Scout, with a bottle of Seven-Up. We spent our summers in that boat.

Phlox

I went back yesterday with my camera to snap some photos of the beautiful and abundant phlox. Now I have the photo on my desktop. :^)

Enchanting Flowers

I love flowers and despite my lack of luck in growing things, I plant flowers every year. This year I am trying sunflowers from seeds. So far the seedlings are doing well. I also bought some dianthus and marigolds. I planted them this week. The weather was nearly perfect and it was nice to wield a trowel in the sunshine. Of course, it will be wonderful if I get lots and lots of flowers, but I'm a realist and I expect that some of the local critters will eat my flowers. Also, if we get a very dry summer and I don't water the flowers enough, the plants may not survive.

I am an optimist though, and occasionally I have enough flowers to cut and arrange in a vase. That makes all the work of cultivating seem worthwhile. So when I see a field of flowers that nobody planted, it seems like a miracle to me.

Today hubby and I went for a walk along one of my favorite trails which winds down into a wide ravine. At the bottom is a very swampy area. Most of the trees in the woods are tulip trees, which are incredibly tall and majestic.

Only a month ago, the trail was still gray and barren, though I could see signs of spring in the fiddleheads, the skunk cabbage, and the periwinkles. Today, I was greeted with the sight of lavender and white phlox. Not just a few phlox. A whole field of them! And I forgot to bring my camera along. :^(

It was an enchanting sight and brought to mind fables of fairies and other magical creatures. I think I will have to put it in a book somewhere.

Graduation!

Daughter #3 graduated on Sunday. Daughter #2 attended the ceremony as well as hubby and I. Daughter #1 was out at sea. :^(

The program was delightfully short--due in part to blessedly brief speeches but also because the college had two ceremonies, one in the morning and one in the afternoon. Afterwards, we nibbled on cookies and cake at the reception. Then we headed home.

I'll miss that college. Daughter #1 started there in 1996 and then Daughter #3 decided to go there. too. The place holds a lot of memories. Whenever I smell the scent of pine trees, I'll remember it.

Still, we all agree that Daughter #2 had best graduation ceremony when she got her BFA at Mason Gross. Those people know how run a party. At the reception, they even served wine.:^)

A Grandnephew's First Communion

It was party time in Massachusetts this past weekend. Our grandnephew received his First Holy Communion. He looks a bit bored in the photo, but just a few hours before the big event we found him full of energy, swinging his baseball bat and launching a tennis ball across the street.


His parents ran a terrific party with plenty of food. Naturally, hubby brought along one of his accordions and provided hours of entertainment for everyone.



Some of the kids became inspired and joined in on other instruments. The percussion section of the band was a wee bit painful to the ear. :^)


Nevertheless, we had a great time. And who knows--one of those kids may actually take music lessons someday.