As I walk through my gardens, I touch the velvety petals of the roses, bend to inhale the sweet scent of the peonies, check the buds on the geraniums and daisies, and remember…
Peony bushes lined the side of our small yard in the house where I grew from a preschooler to a pre-teen. The scent of peonies never fails to take me back to the memory of bowls and bouquets of peonies in May.
To me growing up, Memorial Day meant Decoration Day. My mother would pack the car with geraniums and petunias, and off we would go to the family cemetery to plant. It was on those trips that I heard stories of a grandfather I never knew and ancestors who worked hard as Irish immigrants.
Forty-four years ago I walked down the aisle on my father’s arm with a glorious bouquet of daisies and yellow roses. My hair was adorned with a crown of matching flowers. Daisies never cease to bring back the memories of that special day.
There are irises to recall the first house I shared as a young bride, moonflowers and lilies grown from cuttings shared by friends, honeysuckle that my children picked and tasted.
As I walk through my gardens, I realize they hold a bouquet of memories – a life in flowers that is still growing.
Imagine the Possibilities 
We can enjoy our bouquet of memories any day!
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I had daisies in my wedding 44 years ago… remember how popular they were? In our former yard we had scads… I have to remind Dave that I want them again. I too remember decoration day at an old Chicago cemetery where my mom’s relatives were among the Mafia patrons. We loved to do grave rubbings… I wish I got some Swedish ancestor stories, but my mom wasn’t the storyteller, little jealous that you got Irish family lore. XO
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A life in flowers still growing! What lovely remembrances you shared in this post. I loved Decoration Day and miss it now that we’re so far away from our roots. I can wander from my parents’ stone to my grandparents’ plots and then my great grandparent’s resting place all in close proximity at the same cemetery. And lots of aunts, uncles, and cousins liberally sprinkled in the mix.
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Thanks, Ramona. The family cemetery plots were always quite interesting. Like you, I could wander around and visit generations.
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“A life in flowers that are still growing”…that’s a perfect line.
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