Garden-Share

Growing old with my Mom

Imagine my surprise to see that I had been featured here on Garden- Share. It's been months since I've had a chance to visit the site, but it felt like an old friend had dropped an impromtu note to say hello and remind me there is another world out there.

Since June of 2011, I've been a full time caregiver for my 79 y.o. Mom, who fell on June 21 and broke her left hip. Six months later on December 14 she fell again and broke her right hip and elbow. It's been a tough time.

Through it all, I've had my wonderful husband, great friends, and my garden. Even in the dead of winter, my garden has given me that sense of hope and promise. Hope that better, brighter, days are ahead, that Spring will arrive and bring with it a newness and a surge of renewal and energy. I realize that everything is connected to the cycles of life and everything is in a constant state of change.

I look at the trees and the roses and find myself in awe. I wonder "How do they do that? How do they know when to start budding with their new growth? Who tells them it's time to rest and take a break?"

Then I think about my own body and how it miraculously heals all my cuts, digests my food, thinks millions of thoughts each day, automatically performs such wonderous tasks without my awareness. And it is at that moment that I see the entire picture, the conectedness of it all. And I am grateful.

To all of you who share in this miracle passion we call gardening, I thank you, send you a special thoughts, and appreciate our common link and love~

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Contributing Gardener Comment by Catherine Cronin (Ireland) on February 12, 2012 at 12:47pm: Audra....GS has that effect on all of us Gardeners :)

Spring was definitely in the air here in Ireland today. We had 2 grandkids for the day and we were out digging,planting and having fun too :)

Comment by Audra Mabrey - Z5/IN on February 11, 2012 at 6:15pm: Gardening popped into my life when I moved miles from my home, friends and family. I do not know how I got along for so many years without it. I've been away for Months and for some reason have been drawn back in to Gardenshare. I'm glad to be back and glad I got to read your blog. Happy Gardening! Spring is just around the corner :)

Contributing Gardener Comment by Joan *Flower Angel*.. Z-8 on February 9, 2012 at 11:58pm: Truly a wonderful Blog... "Many Blessings" to you and your Family... "Happy Gardening".

Comment by Alison Baker on February 9, 2012 at 9:15pm: so happy that your garden is source of comfort and joy to you! I am a caregiver for my job and boy some days my garden is all I can think about getting home to! but I love it and find a great satisfation in helping others , you always learn from the experience and as you say end up grateful! thanks for sharing.

Comment by Lourdes Draper on February 9, 2012 at 1:02pm: Hi Briana ..there is a time in our life that we stop some things just to take care of our love ones. You taking care of your Mom have a big heart ..I'm glad that you have a garden to brighten your days. I started gardening this is my third year when my Mom started Dementia Mom and I started our days in the garden..she had so much fun.Today she is bedridden and i talk to her about the garden ..she loves to talk about garden and food the rest is a blur to her Hope and pray your Mom be well and you to have a good day

Comment by Janet Ruth Baron on February 9, 2012 at 12:58pm: Was blessed by reading your blog. You won't go wrong helping Mom. I was able to help my Mom for 3 yrs before she passed in '06. Yes, our bodies are very amazing how they are and so is nature. Am happy you take time to notice those things in a very busy fast paced world. Alot of people don't and aren't even grateful for those things. The positive things of life surely out weigh the negative thngs if we only focus on 'THE GOOD"! My Gma on my Dad's side used to live in CA & I've only got to visit once there but remember it very well and that was near 50 yrs ago...!

Contributing Gardener Comment by Catherine Cronin (Ireland) on February 9, 2012 at 12:21pm: Hy Briana, Welcome back :)

That is a lovely,refreshing Blog to read!

Sorry to hear about your Mom and I hope she is improving now. Spring does give us hope and a renewal of things to come. I also haven't been on here much lately, my excuse is seeing all the beautiful growth in warmer zones and it made me a bit down. Here we have very wet and misty weather which could put one into a slight depressing state. I have started to collect veggie seed packets and refresh the soil in preparation for the new growing season.

Happy Gardening,

Catherine.