It's hard to feel Wonderfulicious when it was only last Wednesday that mom
passed. What a rough week it's been. I plan on writing a tribute to mom
and my aunt who passed in Jan. but right now the grief is . . .
We arrived home on Monday from an appt. I barely remember
going to in time to see this cheerful Oriole, The delight
of having a playful
time bathing in the water fountain
was infectious!
Suddenly my mood changed from bleak to one
full of joy! Mom knew I've always had a fondness
for birds which she always supported even when she
was terrified of them flying near her.
When I was 11 and very ill dad built me a pigeon coop and mom
allowed me to have at least 2 dozen birds. They weren't the usual pigeons
of the grey variety, though I did have one of those.
The ones I had were exotic breeds, like owl pigeons, fan-tailed,
and feather footed.
When we moved to Huntington Beach we had to
find homes for the flock and that's when a parakeet entered
my life. Followed by Cockatiels and a Parrot. It's been decades
since I've had birds in the house; I now prefer them
in the yard.
I had signs from my aunt when she first passed and
I feel certain that the bathing frolicking Oriole was
a sign from mom.
Every April the Sea Urchin Cactus start
blooming. Yesterday morning I was greeted
with the two blooms below.
I photographed them the night
before, photo above.
Every year I try to get different shots
than the year before, it's a challenge.
I must have hundreds of photos
by now.
The first two Sea Urchin cactus plants are probably 15+ years old
and never grew all that well when I lived on the
Monterey Peninsula.
They've multiplied so many times
over the 9 years we've lived in the desert
that there are now over 50 plants of them
in the yard and in pots. Amazing!
"The reality is that you will grieve forever. You will not 'get over' the loss of a love one;
you will learn to live with it. You will heal and you will rebuild yourself around the loss
you have suffered. You will be be whole again but you will never be the same. Nor should you
be the same the same nor would you want to."
Elisabeth Kubler-Ross
