Flower Friday : : Cana Leaves

There are two beds outside our living room windows that are full of cana lilies. They have bright orange blossoms, but the thing about them that I like most is the green,yellow and red striped leaves. As soon as the temperature drops to freezing at night, they will die back and disappear without trace, only to poke their red tips through the soil in the spring and unfurl, segment by segment, into tall plants throughout the spring and summer. They seemed the perfect candidates for Flower Friday, since the 'twist' this week is 'leaves'. Thanks again to Biker Bear for continuing this challenge singlehanded for so long….

We attended a memorial service for our friend Judy this morning and I continue to think about memory and memories. She was so filled with love and enthusiasm for her family and friends, her numerous animals, her garden and her husband that I think most of us are still wrestling with the fact that she has left us. But she leaves behind her a tremendous legacy of memories in the minds of everyone who knew her.  When we arrived at the house for a gathering to celebrate her life the two geese which she had raised from newly hatched goslings were honking and making quite a racket. I think they were missing her too….

it is heartbreaking that Judy's husband, OilMan's high school buddy, has recently been diagnosed with dementia. He may not remember if he watered the tomatoes or fed the parrot. He may not put the begonias in the greenhouse for the winter or keep track of the bills, but I feel sure that he will never forget his life with Judy, and I feel equally sure that the children and grandchildren who adored 'JuJu' and  the friends who gathered so often at their house will see to it that her memory will live on.