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Photo credit - Braiden Rex-Johnson
Inspiring Moment: Boat at Fisherman’s Terminal
Written by Braiden on December 30, 2011
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Belonging
Written by Debbie on December 29, 2011
Dear Mom,
How loyal you were to us all.
How you would love your granddaughter Olivia.
I apologize for not being there to take care of you more when you were fading away. Like dust–the universe carried you away–but unlike dust you are forever engraved in my life, my heart, my mind.
Is this life worth living to make you proud of me, or is it worth dying to be with you again?
I don’t succeed but try to live to make you proud of me.
Though we had our scrapes, I always knew you loved me and would die for me.
I am sorry you will never get the chance to see Olivia, but I feel you live through me when I take care of her.
I understand now what you felt when you looked at your four children and hurt when they hurt, worried when we were out late at night, and anguished over the mistakes you made.
Your beauty was never lost on me. Though we fought, your love lifts me up always and forever until I leave this earth.
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Holiday Memory: Gullan’s Glögg
Written by Braiden on December 26, 2011
When I was a child, one of my mother’s dearest friends hailed from Sweden. Desperately homesick and longing for her country’s unique holiday traditions, each year around Thanksgiving Gullan would show up on our doorstep with a batch of homemade pepparkakar (pepper cookies) and a bottle of Glögg.
Our family soon learned that Glögg is a popular winter-time beverage in Sweden, made from an intriguing mix of what seemed to us (at least during the innocent days of the 1960s) some pretty exotic ingredients: red wine, Aquavit, Madeira, whole cardamom, cinnamon sticks, candied orange peel, raisins, and blanched almonds.
My mother, a dyed-in-the-wool teetotaler at the time, looked askance at the annual bottle of Glögg. But, in deference to her friend’s beloved homeland, she took a few tentative sips of the warm, sweet wine punch. And then a few more.
As I remember things, Mom always got a bit tipsy while my father enjoyed his cup of holiday cheer along with Mom’s merry mood.
Gullan’s husband was transferred back to Europe and Mom passed on five years ago, but my mind often wanders back to those simpler, more innocent days and the warm, soothing drinks of winter like hot chocolate, hot toddies, and, of course, Gullan’s Glögg.
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Missing My Mother. . .
Written by Chelsea Hanson on December 22, 2011
One of our regular columnists, Chelsea Hanson, weighed in on our question on Facebook on who you are missing this holiday season. Thanks, as always, Chelsea!
Who I am missing? Thanks for giving everyone the opportunity to share.
This year I am missing my mother at Christmas, but that is nothing unusual, as I think of her every day.
December 19th marks the 15th anniversary of her death.
I was only 28 when my mom passed away, so I have already have lived one-third of my life without her physical presence.
Although it is hard for me to believe how the time has passed, she still is just as of strong part of my life.
My thoughts, my actions, are influenced by her presence from above, and I am grateful for that connection and that our love and relationship still lives on!
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