The Līgo Haībun Challenge - Flowers

Background:  Here is a little slice of real life.  My lovely wife's mother passed away not quite a month ago.  There are always a lot of things for the survivors to sort out.  This entry relates some of that experience.  The LW posted a pic like this on Facebook today, and with a little bit of prompting composed the haiku the follows my text.  The haiku that I composed to go with this pic back in Nov. 2010 seems strangely appropriate also, so I'll end with that, making the total word count 226, and this a collaborative effort.

 View along the foundation, later in Spring

Flowers

Progress is slow clearing out the old house where mom lived alone for so many years, getting it ready to sell after she passed away. 

 Every closet is full of old clothing and older memories. Boxes from the attic hold pictures of her first communion, her wedding, her parents, older ancestors in stiff, starched collars, mementos of dad's experiences in WW II. 

The work isn’t hard. Clear the closets, open the boxes, identify things to go to Good Will, things to keep or distribute, things to throw away.  The decisions aren't so hard either. But the past, and yearning for the past has so many distractions. That is what is slow and difficult. 

We asked 6-year-old great-granddaughter Emily what she wanted. After a few false starts, she decided on a refrigerator magnet, and any of her drawings, if there were any left. There weren't, but there was a multi-colored heart-shaped magnet that she will love. 

When we left the house after a long day, we found that the daffodils along the foundation were peeking up out of the ground, just like they do every February. In a world of endless and sometimes painful change, they remind us that some things are constant.

 ~:~:~:~

My favorite flower
Full of the promise of Spring
Reminds me of Mom

 ~:~:~:~

Flowers in Springtime:
Not so long ago, now a
Fading memory

 ~:~:~:~

Ligo Haibun: Flowers