BOUQUETS OF COLOR MADE HER SMILE Parachute Shopping Bag

Brightly colored, light weight and durable, these are your solution to loosing those sustainable grocery bags. The Ripstock fabric* makes them super compact, simply easy to always have on hand. They're also a stylish alternative for travel. You can stick one in your suitcase for souvenirs, a beach day and poolside. Worried about keeping them clean? There's no worry, turn them inside out and toss them in the wash with the rest of your load. If you think it's getting a little wrinkled, again turn it inside out and press it on low heat. There are so many exciting options for this bag; we're sure it will quickly become a favorite!

* Ripstop Fabric is a parachute fabric which strengthened square grid weave of poly blend spun fibers. The construct is tight and closed, making it a strong fabric that's both lightweight and waterproofed.

ABOUT THE PAINTING:

BOUQUETS OF COLOR MADE HER SMILE: Acrylic on Canvas, 20 x 16 IN.

It’s strange the things you remember when your parents pass. It’s equally as strange the many things in your everyday life that take on a new tone, an odd sacred quality.

When my mom passed, as we were making the arrangements for her service, the pastor at my childhood church recalled that I write. So, he asked me to compose something for the back of her funeral bulletin. He gave me the deadline of noon the following day for the printers. No matter what one is assigned to write, to have an unexpected piece ready for publication in less than 24 hours is a tight assignment… much less a writing in honor of your recently departed Momma Bear. Not surprisingly, it was one of the hardest things I’ve ever written, at least with my father’s obituary there was some structure to doing that so I had a starting point. But, with my mom, it was a blank page with a blank form, coming from a daughter whose feelings were somewhat blank because I was still in shock.

So, I sat outside on the back porch, overlooking her beloved gardens with my computer in my lap. It was barely a week since she’d been gone, early April in Texas. The flowers had yet to bloom but the buds were full from the amaryllis near the kitchen door to the miniature roses on either side of the pool to the crepe myrtle along the back fence. I found my words in that landscape. Here’s an excerpt of her poem I wrote:

Rocking on the back porch you loved so well, surrounded by God’s great nature, I see you

Birds call your name as they take wing to flight, the rustling leaves follow the sun in its journey

A shadow, you stand with hose in hand and flip-flops and red lacquered nails to match your choice of wine

No smile on your countenance, just a simple breath exhaled; you are at peace

Grant us the guidance to be worth of our parts you take with you

as we journey forward holding you in our hearts

My mom loved her backyard, all the flowers she knew when to plant and when to prune. She loved entertaining and decorating for every season… but, when I found myself stumbling most to give her passing a voice, it was her burgeoning flowers that spoke to me. This piece reminds me of that moment.