This cute little bear showed up on our doorstep on Christmas Eve.
A week after my farmers mom met Jesus.
Each one of the siblings received the same gift.
A bear.
The perfect reminder of a wonderful woman.
Teddy Bears lined her stairway.
They nestled in nooks and crannies in her old farmhouse.
They adorned coffee mugs.
Mugs filled with steaming coffee as we sat around her farmhouse table.
A teddy bear room decorated to appeal to every youngster to enter the room.
And so this cute little bear resides in the parlor that was once hers.
6 of her grandchildren and countless others have held that cute little bear tightly.
That cute little bear has been read to and walked around in the strollers.
And all through the years, he has presided over the doings in the parlor.
Year after year.
A reminder.
And today marks 19 years since she’s been gone.
How is it possible?
How grateful we are for the time we had.
So much love in those years.
Lessons taught by living.
Living for God.
Living as a servant.
Everything she touched flourished.
Plants, people, meal preparation.
I miss her.
She understood farming.
She was gentle;
An encourager.
A light no matter how dark.
The cute little bear reminds me of how she could catch the wildest of new born calves.
She would corral them and the mama.
It seemed effortless.
She could sew and transform the broken to new.
Even her last breath was taken while refinishing a piece of furniture.
This cute little bear reminds me of her gentle way with the grand children.
The strength and confidence in all her children.
Life was simpler then.
The demands less in so many ways.
Not easier; just simpler.
I look around our home.
I wrap myself in the warmth of memories.
Such a legacy of love, hard work and faith.
I will forever be grateful.
I sit for a little longer with the cute little bear.
I adjust him a bit.
I thank God for the time I had.
I thank God for recipes and memories.
I thank God for her son that I love with all my heart.
I pat that cute little bear and head off for the day..
I will hold tightly the memories of a life well lived today.
THERESA L DAVIS says
What a beautiful Tribute.