This morning I dedicate my pretty vase and bouquet to my friend Pat, who passed away this past Saturday. She was 83 years old. Hers was a long life of service and dedication – she was a teacher. But not any teacher; she was my children’s 2nd grade teacher. In second grade in a Catholic school, she prepared them for First Communion, teaching them about Jesus’ love for them. But not only did she teach them, she showed them by her example, her love for God and her love for them. She was also a dear friend to me who always greeted me with her warm smile and uplifting word of encouragement. She was a gentle soul and during her last years in life while living in a nursing home, she often spent that time praying for all her friends and family.
I recently came across the following quote and immediately thought of Pat. From the outside, her life did not seem exciting or adventurous but she influenced and inspired hundreds of lives for the better.

Let us not be satisfied with a mediocre life
– Pope Francis


in a vase on Monday: In my stoneware vase: coreopsis, penstemon, perovskia, centaurea cyanus, yellow zinnia, shasta daisy, fern.
Blue for Pat’s devotion to Mary mother of God, yellow for her lovely smile and joy, white for her faith.

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