At last, after a few false start warmer weather appears to be upon us. When I finally managed to step outside and savor the sunshine, I found the jasmine was budding and the roses were preparing to burst open in a blaze of glory, along with a myriad of weeds and even less desirable insects.
Call it what you will, pride or neighborhood pressure, but I felt moved to secure my rakes, clippers and insecticides. I was preparing to “do battle” and reclaim what I dryly refer to as my landscaping, which at best might fall under the category of “nature run amuck”.
As the sweat trickled down my back and the grass cuttings set me to itching, I admit a bit of cussing ensued. The honeysuckle however fragrant and lovely was winning the day, choking the life out of my shrubs as it reached for the sun. Suddenly I paused and realized I had discovered a miracle amidst the overgrown grass, a lovely large peony bush covered with buds ready to crack open was actually flourishing. I was amazed and delighted!
Tired and itching, I at last retired to the front porch to enjoy one of the South’s true treasures, a glass of sparkling home-brewed ice tea. My neighbors may not have thought I won the war with my yard work, but I felt a great sense of victory as I looked towards the beautiful peony bush. Memories flooded into my mind, memories of my mother each spring instructing me not to mow her peony bushes down with the riding lawn mower. As the oldest I was responsible for mowing the fairly large yard. Being a book-worm I would mow and read, and without fail, I would be distracted and “OOPS!” under the blades the peonies would go! Bless my mother, she never yelled – too long, and I could out run her. I always felt so bad as she took such pleasure from the sight and smell of her big beautiful peonies.
So mom as this Mother’s Day approaches I want you to know I toiled over my patch of yard and finally managed to save a peony bush and it made me think of you!
The tea slipped down nice and cool but recalling how lucky I am to have this wonderful woman in my life warmed me through and through. There is no substitute for the love she has given me through out my entire life. I am who I am because of her determination and I am sure many of you can say the same. So I want to extend my thank yous to all mothers every where. In fact I believe I can honestly say all of us at the Heeney Company send out a heart-felt Happy Mother’s Day and we hope to see you all soon as the year progresses.
PS – We even carry peonies that would fool my mother. Pity I didn’t know about the possibilities when I was a kid!
written by: Brenda Stiles
