Grandma's Irises
First let me explain, my mother died a couple years ago in May. She loved her flowers and her garden. This morning I found my mother dancing in the breeze and smiling at the world in the front yard.
The Irises had bloomed!
There they stood, tall, proud , steadfastly blooming year after year. Moving back and forth caressing the breeze, opening up in a wide smile to greet the sun. Yes, they are common, down to earth but proudly returning every year.
The Irises are just starting to shoot up green leaves, another cycle about to start. I anxiously await the beautiful purple flowers to burst from the green buds. As I wait, I remember the past and how the Iris starts have moved through the family.
Where Grandma O'Dell got her first clump of Irises I don't know. We called them flags when I was a kid and we used them for sword fights. I'm sure they came from someone who knew she loved growing things and wanted to share their joy in flowers.
I know mom's clump traveled from her childhood home and took up a place of honor beside the porch of the little slab house dad had built on the farm. Some still grow there today even though the slab house was torn down and rebuilt with a new and bigger house. When dad died, mom sold the farm and moved to Vancouver. It was important that we help move some of the Irises and plant them by the front porch of the new house.
My clump traveled in from the farm at Yacolt when we purchased our home in Southeast Portland. Steve, my son, helped me plant them beside our front porch where they have thrived and multplied. Some clumps traveled from my house back to Vancouver and now grace the area beside, my daughter, Sharlene's front porch to welcome spring. I think the longest trip the Irises made was a flight back to North Carolina on the plane with Steve. Now they stand guard in a flowerbed beside Steve and Karen's front porch.
Ah, yes--The Irises go on and on, growing, multiplying, and welcoming each spring. They are perfectly at home either in the city or the country. Traveling well and sending out new roots. Standing tall no matter what life tosses their way. Every year they can be found smiling wide, cherishing the past and welcoming the new. The Irises goes on and on, so much like my mother's love.
After reading this my oldest daughter, Michele, wanted to know why she didn't have any Irises. She is planning to take some the next time she is here to visit so they can grace her front porch as well.
Written by:
Janet Kreier-Olds
2002
