When Ryan died, people were so generous with their gifts and responses. I was moved by each and every card, present, memento, story, etc. Each was cherished, each meant that Ryan wasn’t forgotten.
Maybe because he was a guy who was shy, hesitant to stand out, and often overlooked, knowing that people cared about him and reached out helped.
I cried over armfuls of envelopes when I carried in the mail. I read and reread the notes. I planted the trees, hung the wind chimes, and overall, cherished all of the gifts.
Many people sent flowers, and I kept the blooms going as long as I could. I shared some with family to take to their homes, and spread the rest around ours. I trimmed the stems and changed the water daily to make the flowers last. Then, when the freshness was past saving, I dried what I could, and filled a cabinet with the vases.
But I did not want them to become a forgotten stash of unwanted glassware to eventually be donated to Goodwill. Instead, I decided to do something special with them, and on a few, I am attempting mosaics. (I don’t have good grouting skills, though, I will have to work on cleaning a bit more off of this one).
Others, I have decorated and filled with garden flowers and given away on special occasions. I’d like to take an embellished vase filled with iris that Ryan planted into the nursing home he worked at, on the anniversary of his death next spring.
Thank you to everyone who offered hope to me with kind words and thoughtful expressions of care. I was moved and heartened by your gestures.
Karla, the mosaics you are making and the other gestures are such nice mementoes of your time with your son. I know that creating is so therapeutic, and hope that you are finding it so.
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