April showers and memories

It's been raining and showering off and on these last few days, but today the sun is shining and all is right with the world.
Summer is on the way; the flowers are beginning to bud.
I can't wait for my knockout roses to bloom. They bring a smile to my face every time I see them from my living room windows.

April brings memories of friendship and love.
Doris Cahoon Perry, the first counseling psychologist at Trenton State College, was born in April and died in April, too, some 73 years later. I think of the hours I spent in her company with sheer joy, remembering her infectious laugh, her beautiful blue eyes and her gift of empathy, which she showered on me during some of the neediest days of my life. I remember her in April and cherish the knowledge that she gave me the gift of her friendship.

April brings memories of mothering and unconditional love.
Catherine Rossette Rubba Caroccio was born on April 24, 1916 and died on December 3, 1972. From my earliest memory, she was the one constant in my life, the person who never judged, always supported and ever opened her arms to me, no matter what. I never imagined her not being with me well into old age (hers and perhaps even mine!), so her death at 56 was such a blow it left me bereft and feeling totally alone in the world. I look like her...in fact, last week when I came home sporting my new haircut, I passed her picture which hangs in the hallway of our home and had to stop to stare in amazement at the resemblance. We have the same oval-shaped face, the same eyes, the same smile and, thanks to my hair stylist, even our hairdos are alike!

Unlike my mother, whose friends considered her to be a saint, I am not such a mild-mannered, soft-spoken person. My mom, it has been said, never raised her voice to anyone, never was given to fits of temper. I, on the other hand, am prone toward letting my feelings, positive or negative, show and no one I know would ever describe me as saintly.

Still, I am proud to carry her resemblance so that anyone who knew her would give a quick intake of breath upon meeting me and say, "Oh my goodness! I thought for a minute you were Kate!" Sadly, those people are also leaving this world, probably to sit for a cup of coffee and a good laugh with my mom, wherever she is.

April also brings some anxiety over the health of a dear friend, who will undergo surgery on my mom's birthday. Knowing my mother as I do, I know she will, at my request, be watching over Carole and guiding the hands of her surgeon on April 24th. Mom's goodness will bring a blessing to Carole, just as it did to everyone who loved her.

April is a warm, happy, loving and compassionate month.