Our Garden of Love!

This past Saturday we were working in our front yard and my next door neighbor, who loves roses, flowers, and plants came over.  A few weeks she had come over to give me some sharp clippers that she bought for me.  We were visiting and she shared with me that she has suffered some bad heart problems and how gardening relaxes her.  When we moved to Puyallup I was unsure, who I wanted to know about my brain bleed, but when my neighbor was sharing her story I decided that I felt safe and secure enough to share a little bit about what happened to me 22 months ago.

This past Saturday she came over with three more starts of rose bushes and shared with me that she was going to plant me a rose garden because after going through a brain bleed and the recovery process she felt I deserved an opportunity to stop and smell the roses.  She also selected some specific rose colors that represented things about my new life.  The first color was red because not only does red represent love, but it also represents stroke awareness and the second chance I was given to live a life with my family and friends.  The next color was a mixture of yellow and pink this represented a new friendship that was formed because of our courageous battles we both fought.  The last color was white to represent faith, to remind me that faith is key to my continued emotional and physical healing.

I have never been a person, who has enjoyed gardening, but I must say gardening has a whole new meaning to me.  Every day when the sun is shining I go out and water my roses, and other plants and think about the course of my life.  The brain bleed stunk and occasionally still stinks; however, it has also changed my life in a more positive and meaningful direction.  I marvel at the people, who I have crossed paths with since August 31, 2011, and everything they have taught me and how several of them have touched my life.  I do not question why we bought the house we bought and the location.  Right now I need this and my family needs it too.  As I grow my rose garden I'm reminded after the thorns of life there is also beauty and happiness to be enjoyed.  This rose garden truly has purpose and meaning to me.

Here is one of the roses!