Rosemary

The road of life is strewn with many stop signs; each marked with a bouquet of flowers. Sprinkled along the road are clusters of Rosemary, helping the memories to survive.

There are wildflowers commemorating unforeseen curves in the road ahead; occasionally, a few have thorns bringing remembrances of tears, unshed or otherwise. Every lane has its hidden hurdles adding to the journey’s adventure. As I look back on the trail I have taken, I count some of the varieties of blooms lining the path.

At one of the earlier cutoffs along the road, there is a single white camellia bound with a shimmering ribbon resurrecting a magical moonlit evening in the famed Rainbow Room when I wore a strapless crimson gown and danced to the music of Lester Lanin. That night was when my road curved sharply in a different direction.

Admittedly, my favorite bouquet will ever be the cluster of white roses evoking the memory of my wedding bouquet. A narrow cylinder stands alongside it containing the single alabaster bloom I left in Pinelawn one sad September morning.

Nestled close to the edge of the path as the road moves forward stands a large basket of amazing colors, all rather unexpected in their glory, and that is the bouquet representing our six Granddaughters.

The potpourri is strong; sweet and almost overwhelming. And the colors such an unusual combination, yet so perfectly blended. I could never have conjured up such a delightful assortment.

There are two varieties of tea roses surrounding the rim of the basket; each representing the first two beautiful Granddaughters welcomed into our lives. The eldest is represented with the more vibrant of the pink spectrum; deep and delightful, a remembrance of the years she spent in the UK; the younger, a gentler pink, still vital and softly luscious in its shading. Tea roses are a strong breed of flower, always contributing to the landscape of life, as I am confident both these young women are doing in their worlds today.

Tucked into the inner layer of the basket are two incredible exotic blooms; full of passion and foliage. Both seem to embrace life with their blossoms, exactly the way each of the two Granddaughters of my heart reached out to me from across the country when I desperately needed comfort.

And in the very center are two unique varieties of lavender, almost alike, but not quite, reminding me of the two youngest Granddaughters who arrived in our world mere minutes apart. The deeper lavender reminds me of the younger, strong, vital and beautiful evoking memories of the Great Grandmother she never met. The accompanying variety of the bloom is deeper in the blue shading, strong in its own identity, and stands tall and firm in the very core of this remarkable bouquet exactly like her twin sister. Katherine is the older of the two, distinctive in her flaxen beauty, and it is she who will leave within days to begin her own journey throughout life.

I was close to her age when I began mine, never realizing how many flowers would be strewn across my path in the years that would follow. There were a myriad of colors that lined my road, the four white lilac bushes that represented the birth of each child, the evergreens that seemed to wilt as each one moved away, and yet revived with every visit. Now I can only wonder about the path my young Granddaughter will take.

I cannot imagine how intricate or colorful Katherine’s road will be. I am aware I will not be able to share much of it with her, but eternally grateful for the years we have grown to understand, love and respect each other as women. I am thrilled for her as she enters the brave new world on her horizon, and in awe of her ability to cope with unforeseen challenges.

I only hope the bouquets that line her path are as lustrous, magical and as unexpected as I have found mine to be. More I cannot wish you, but, “Pray love, always know there is Rosemary, and that is for remembrance.”