easter used to mean days of planning, new outfits to sew, eggs to dye, baskets to fill, five of them! gardens to tend a house to clean and food to cook. our home was full. grandparents, aunties and uncles, cousins, children and then my own grandchildren. there was the easter egg hunt. my favorite part. we always had an easter egg hunt, even in uncooperative weather. i remember years when my children were young, we went to our mexico house over easter. there was the time it rained for days. so i hid eggs all over the house!
i don't know how it happened so quickly. but my children are now grown. i read somewhere that when our babies are young, the days are long, but the years short. they grow up, and they move away. and so easter didn't happen this year. if i'm completely honest i'll admit there may have been a few tears (mine), the kids (who did call) said it's okay mom.
and it is. really. they are doing what every parent hopes for, living and thriving on their own. two are in nyc, one in arizona, one in los angeles and one here in summerland. (i saw her for an hour this morning when she stopped by with a latte and hug before continuing on to l.a.).
i learned today, for the future, i am going to have to be more creative in planning...after i stopped feeling sorry for myself, i took a walk with my camera, to the marsh and the beach. it's a miracle how much better nature can make a person feel...
i saw the easter bunny! and i found some wild sweet peas! the red-winged black bird sat still for once and i must have counted a dozen house finchs. i hope i won't be in trouble for this, but i picked a couple small blossoms to bring home.
xo lori
it's all good Lori - albeit difficult to watch them grow and leave. Even knowing you did a great job makes you wish there were babies around the house sometimes right? Babies who need you in a physical way, not just chats on the phone, and long distance hugs. So good that you went out to seek solace in nature, and did your incredible photography.
ReplyDeleteYour job isn't done by a long shot but it's changing and you're changing with it.
it's all good.
wow, Mim said it so beautifully I'm just going to ditto her ;)
ReplyDeleteI love the little vase of flowers you collected. It's your easter basket! And how wonderful of the bunny to show up for you. He just hopped by to let you know it's okay too :)
xo♥
Lori - Mim said it perfectly. Mine are all pretty much grown, and this year, Easter was 'low-key'. I loved the chaos of those childhood holidays. I could sniffle just thinking about it. But we both know it's what we want for them: for them to grow up and be independent. To experience life and have adventures.
ReplyDeleteSigh. Sniffle. :) I'm glad you went for that walk and saw the Easter bunny. xox Pam
So sweet Lori~
ReplyDeleteI was feeling the guilties this Easter for not inviting my parents out to our home. it makes me sad & i wish I could make it better. I had a sick daughter home as well as a healthy one. we enjoyed just the 4 of us which is rare.
ps~ i got to see the Easter Bunny on Saturday! boy he got there fast!
No wonder I never got Easter Eggs = the Easter Bunny was your way
ReplyDeletexxxxx
Happy Easter in an adult world now. Be proud - you've done a grand job with your children!
beautiful pictures lori. hope you're feeling less sorry for yourself lots of love x
ReplyDeleteThis makes me think of my mom and the day our daughter is all grown up with a life of her own. So, I am calling my mom and snuggling up with my daughter :)
ReplyDeleteI'll never tell about the flowers.
ReplyDeleteYour festive Easters will return, I'm sure of it. Before you know it, there will be an entire gaggle of grandchildren to charm and entice and your house will be filled with that happy chaos. In the meantime, you have so much life just outside your door. Funny, I was just reading a little blurb about a study that showed that for women, particularly, being in nature brings more positive feelings and boosts self esteem. :) Gorgeous photos!
ReplyDeleteLori - I can feel your angst ... and as an unexpected turn of events, I ended up all my girls under one roof. It was magical. I have come to cherish these seemly rarer times when we manage to all gather under one roof. I think you found the perfect remedy for your mommy blues. Your photos are absolutely beautiful. Hugs my dear Lori.
ReplyDelete"Your job isn't done by a long shot but it's changing and you're changing with it."
ReplyDeleteah mim...said so perfectly.
lori, you can make me cry. (you can make me laugh (nonstop)too). this made me think not only of the mother i am but the little girl i used to be. my Mother would have a huge easter basket for my brother and me, with a huge chocolate bunny.
change is inevitable. but the circle has no end.
last night, as easter was coming to a close, i had the best exchange with a dear friend. i will remember it fondly as part of my own easter day.
love
kj
i love when nature heals me and when a sadness can be transformed into happiness by the beauty that surrounds me in nature. i'm so glad that your day was filled with some goodness from the earth on easter... and love from your children near and far.
ReplyDeleteaw lori...yeah you write so truthfully..our first born chose to spend his easter hols with his friends down at pangani rather than come to zanzibar with us...my first experience..but then i thought how lovely to receive an sms saying "am having the time of my life" over tears and wanting mama!? hey? your pictures are BEAUTIFUL as always...sending love xxx j
ReplyDeleteI wish you could have joined us here (helping). We had two grandchildren (feeling like eight) knocking at our door at 6:30 a.m. AFTER they had already been out collecting eggs and having enough energy all day to make us run and jump! Yes, it is lovely and sweet, but oh boy, am I worn out! Haha. there are always two sides.
ReplyDeleteBut you have your memories, and new grandchildren will come by, take every year as it comes. These celebrations are NOT meant to make us sad if they turn out in a different way. Going on a beautiful walk with your camera sounds like a perfect Easter Day to me!
I got a little too many milk chocolate eggs for my taste (only like dark choc), so Janet, hold out your hands, here they come flying!
yes, dear lori - i've been fighting back some of those tears myself lately too. it's so hard, sometimes.......
ReplyDeletebut a trip into nature brings wonderful solace. i love your fotos -- esp of the redwinged blackbird, which i treasure as a personal totem.
sending warm hugs♡
amanda
I've said to my own mother, so many times, "It's okay mom," and it really is okay. It's okay (although sometimes a little sad) when things change and people grow up and go away, but new traditions are born and there are new ways to celebrate and life is lived forwards. :)
ReplyDeleteI really love the words you heard somehwere about the days lasting long and the years being short...My Hannah is 13 and I am already starting to panic about the future.She did not want to be involved in dyeing the eggs this year,but she still asks me to sing to her at night..Im so thankful for that.
ReplyDeleteYour beautiful photos inspire the deeper part of my heart sweet Lori.Big Hugs,Cat
Absolutely incredible. What joyful images! Peace.
ReplyDeleteThese photographs are just beautiful.
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