Memory and Rebirth in Homewood, Alabama

Not too far away..., originally uploaded by Wren's Nest Cottage.

We wrote to the photographer, Cindy, to ask if we could post this January 23 2009 photo on our blog, and to find out the story behind the daffodils and the berries in the photo. Read on, for a timeless tale of connection and rebirth.

Thank you for asking, because these are such special daffodils!

25 years ago, my parents sold the house and land that were my childhood home near Birmingham, Alabama. They had built the house right after WWII, on land that been given to them by my mother's father. At the time the place was sold, I was a young twentysomething, busy with my life and my first apartment. I deeply loved the old home place, but didn't think as much about leaving some things behind as I did in later years.

When I bought my own house (Wren's Nest Cottage, Homewood, Alabama) in 1997, it really made me begin to think about what I had taken for granted about my old home. I remembered the drystone walls my father built, and my mother's lovely flowers and shrubs. So...a few years back, my sisters and I went back to the old place. The house had tumbled down, and the lawns and the hill behind the house had been completely reclaimed by the forest. Our goal was to secure some stones from the old walls to use in our gardens, but we found something else, equally wonderful - Mama's daffodils were blooming thick amongst the undergrowth. We dug up a bucketful, wondering if they'd survive being transplanted while in bloom. As you can see, they are thriving! And the red berries are from my mother's nandina bush. My sister pulled up a wee one almost as an afterthought while we were gathering the daffodil bulbs. It is now waist high and gives us many baby nandinas every year. And yes, we did get lots of lovely old stones for our gardens as well.

So please feel free to use my photo - I'm grateful to you for asking. It gave me a tear and a smile to remember. My parents have both passed on, but I have much love and beauty from their lives to fondly recall.