T.R.E.A.S.U.R.E.

I Digress. I heal.

My Tribute to Mum

If you are reading this, please know that you are one of my treasures. I am eternally grateful for your support during this vulnerable time of loss. Your cards, prayers, facebook posts and kindness have  given me strength.

 

Simply put...I feel loved. For over 3 weeks I have enjoyed your caring sentiments. The cards span our 10 foot table and when I pass by I read and re-read them. I never imagined the comfort that a sympathy card could provide and I have learned that while it is difficult to find the right words to write, the effort can have a tremendously healing outcome.

Healing is a wonderful thing.

 

What does a child know of parents?

They were the center of my universe. 

I measured all things by their standards.

 

In time, when I started my own family I borrowed many memories from my childhood. 

 

She was a loving mother who cherished her title of 'mum' and grandmamma!

Mum was a helper. She cleaned and cooked, laundered and scrubbed, and made sure that our home was spotless. She sewed many of my clothes as well as the clothes for my Barbie dolls!

She loved coffee. She loved toast.

 

This little oil lamp is a treasure.

Very few possessions survived our international move from Canada so lighting this flame brings back some fabulous memories. Most of what I remember is the smell of the oil!

 

This silver collection pre-dates moi. In her early days, mum worked at Oneida where she collected several coffee and tea sets. As a child I remember the hours spent polishing the silver with my maternal grandmother. Did I mention that what I remember is the smell of the ammonia! I prefer the patina that develops. Perhaps someday I will clean them with my grand-daughter. 

From jewelery to silver service ware, mom loved shiny treasures.

Our kitchen featured a turquoise refrigerator for as long as I can remember.

 

 

While the refrigerator is long gone, this egg beater was a frequently used utensil that survived the years. It reminds me of the hundreds of meals that mom cooked for us. As a young mother I grew to appreciate the hundreds of hours involved in grocery shopping, meal planning and kitchen clean up required to serve family meals. I treasure that gift from mom.

 

On my 18th birthday some 40 years ago, my parents gifted me a charm bracelet.

I had kept the charms but the chain has long since worn out.

 

Since mom LOVED jewelry, I thought it would be fitting to re-fashion some of her treasures into my cherished Tiffany bracelet gifted to me by my favorite contractor. 

 

If you have a special piece that you want to memorialize into contemporary and wearable art, please visit my dear friend Karen here. She is exceptionally creative and talented! 

 

 

 

 

This is my mom's wedding ring and the 10 year pendant from moms' service at Scottsdale Insurance.

 

Mum loved crosses.

The several rosaries that she had collected over the years are a testimony to her deep faith.

I believe that she found comfort in the cross; though her faith went inward by the time I was born.

Thank you to hospice for this final treasured cross that provided relief for me during the final months.

 

 

Thank you for sharing this tribute with me.

 

     The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not be in want.2 He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters,3 he restores my soul. He guides me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake.4 Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. 5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. 6 Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.  

Psalm 23:1-6