Happy Mothers Day!

My mom had a lot of interesting stories to tell and I almost missed hearing them.  She passed away in 2007.

This photo was taken of my mom, Sirkka, at Pender Harbour.

Two years before my mom died, before she was diagnosed with cancer, I started a scrapbook of my mom's life.  I sat with her often to ask questions and she was so pleased that I wanted to hear her stories.  Like so many kids, I was always busy with my own life and thought I would do this 'someday'.  I came so close to losing that opportunity.

My mom told me about a childhood of poverty and hunger, but also about a loving family, first loves, hard work, dances, singing and poetry.  She recounted the heartache and the hopes in leaving Finland to come to Canada and her life in a new country where she couldn't speak the language.  She shared the joys and disappointments of her life.  I learned so much more about the person who was my mom by listening to her stories.

When the time came to eulogize my mom, I was so thankful that I could share some of those stories about this amazing woman; about her courage, strength, talent and generosity, and her love. 

A Tribute to my Creative Mother

My mom was one of the most creative women I have ever known.  She spent much of her life making do but she managed to do it with beautiful style.

Airi Sirkka Annele Huhtala Kuntzemann

June 5, 1926 - November 30, 2007

Mom loved flowers and wherever she lived she created incredible gardens.  Her most spectacular creation was a rock garden that she built rock by rock by herself on a hillside.  Always mindful of her limited budget she collected seeds each fall to plant in the spring and she collected perennials wherever she could.  Old homesteads, ghost towns, roadsides and even from the gardens of the recently departed.  Mom especially loved pansies, her own mother's favourite flower.

Sadly, last fall my sister and I returned to our old home, 46 years later, and only a few remnants of the rock gardens remain.  The Highways Department had purchased the place years ago to house road crews and had brought in loads of fill to extend the yard, burying the rock gardens.

The current  owners kindly allowed us to take a few of the remaining stones and this year we will honour our mom's memory with a special little rock garden and lots of pansies.

Thinking Spring!

Calendula on handmade paper card

The ground is still covered in snow but I'm thinking spring.  The days are getting longer and the sun is glowing warmer.  I especially love that I wake up naturally in the morning, to the light.  But this weekend it's time to 'spring ahead' to Daylight Savings Time and I'll need the jangle of the alarm clock to wake me up again.

While winter is a great time for collecting moose poo, the warmer weather means the sap will be running and it's time to gather the woody bast fibres like willow, red osier dogwood and alder barks for my papers.  Each season brings new treasures for my craft and they're free!