In May 2021, I began writing about the flowers and our little gardens.
I wrote a HAIKU poem for each of the flowers.
I also took many photographs. My husband and I tended the flower gardens and lawns during the entire season.

We worked to plant and care for flowers, new bushes, trees, and our Zen Meditation Garden.
Bob designed and built the Zen Meditation Garden in 2007. I always remember that summer, for it was the last summer, I would ever see my gardens with clarity. Unfortunately, I lost most of my sight that fall.
We walked around our garden areas from early spring to late fall, fussing with the plants and admiring the flowers and birds. Our two dogs, Miss Mitchell and Miss Dixie Tulip were with us on our rounds to enjoy the gardens.

This spring, I’ll be outdoors alone, taking care of the clean-up duties to clear away the winter debris.

Bob began having memory issues a few years ago, and over the past year, it got progressively worse. Finally, our doctor looked at me during a visit and said, “Bob has severe dementia. You may have to place him in a facility very soon.” The doctor was grim, and I knew he was right. This was the first time I acknowledged that Bob needed care that was beyond what he could get at home.

We called Vitas’ Hospice to evaluate our situation by the end of February. Unfortunately, he was admitted to the program and continued to live at home for another month. Still, it was apparent that Bob needed to be in a place where he would be safe and have the care he needed.

Bob’s dementia became much more severe in the year since I began the Garden Songs series.
In late March, Bob became a resident of the memory care unit at a local assisted living home, Northview Estates.
I am thankful he is at home in a lovely place with good care. The best part is that he is only about three miles from our house. We furnished his room with his favorite recliner chair. It has a handmade quilt made just for him by my cousin Kay Wallace. She created his quilt with fabric pictures of motorcycles on it, and he loved that quilt. We have put photos in his room so that he is surrounded by his loved ones every time he goes into his room. We place some of his treasures in his room – vintage cars, a tiny crystal angel that he bought at Dollar Tree one day, and other unique items to him. He has other people to talk with all day long, and he is getting along very well. Hospice is there to take care of him five mornings a week, and their nurse visits him regularly and our social worker from Vitas’.

Please enjoy the first post I wrote last year to begin this series.

Next, you will see photos of our flowers and Bob.
I called the series Garden Songs.

See the LINK below to read, “Consider the Flowers.”

©April 1, 2022. Lynda McKinney Lambert. All rights reserved.

Consider the Flowers – Click Here