Dear Reader:
When I first read the title quote…I paused and re-read it. Love is a conversation, not a message (original quote by Douglas Stone.) I needed to think on this a minute.
The quote accompanied a short story titled : “Unspoken Love” by Emily King in Chicken Soup for the Gardener’s Soul. Puzzled I picked up the book and began the story…then I understood the quote.
Don’t you love my rose bush by the fence? It isn’t my rose bush, however, it is my neighbor Vickie’s rose bush. She had been given it by another colleague at work (since Vickie has a well-earned reputation as a woman with a BIG GREEN THUMB,)
The problem was that her yard doesn’t get enough light for roses…so she asked me about planting it at the end of my driveway so that she could see it from her front yard. More importantly, to me, without a green thumb, Vickie could apply emergency measures if the rose bush needed something that I was clueless about… so far the plan has worked.
Vickie is an early riser…I am more of a moderate one…but many a morning (since acquiring the rose bush) I have seen Vickie cutting stems, buds, fertilizing, or watering it, as needed.
This leaves me in a great position…I get to enjoy it without worrying about killing it…either over-watering, cutting back stems at the wrong time, etc.
Vickie is a quiet soul and she is a jewel of a neighbor…she just quietly goes about making our street look better for her being on it. She’s not afraid of hard work and her yard shows it. Her love of gardening speaks loudly even if she doesn’t. It tells us how much she cares for us and our neighborhood.
Vickie, like Dave, in the short story, is a person of few words. But from both of them I have come to understand the quote.
“Saying “I love you” is a conversation, not a message.” Douglas Stone
“Unspoken Love”
Emily knew when she married Dave that he was a man of few words. Their marriage was a strong one but both did have their own opinions…like when it came to roses. Dave had little use for rose bushes and Emily treasured them.
Dave felt like they demanded too much tedious care ( pruning, spraying, mulching, and fertilizing) while Emily considered every minute of their care well worth the results…and the fragrance.
One winter Emily fell in love with the idea of an English rose garden while going through a catalogue, she worked hard setting it up in the spring and diligently watered all summer.
It was in the fall that she began to feel pain in her lower stomach. Day by day it increased in intensity until she was forced to see a doctor. After several tests she got the call to come in for the results and bring her husband.
She had colon cancer. The plan was surgery first followed by six months of chemotherapy.
She only had a week to let her family and friends know before the surgery took place. A month later she was home and lying on the sofa listening to the weather report. Possible snow and bitter cold temperatures.
“Oh no” Emily moaned, “I never did get the roses mulched.”
Dave said nothing, but following the weather forecast, the practical handyman said, “I’d better go winterize the outside faucets” and headed towards the garage.
A few minutes later, Emily hobbled to the kitchen sink for a glass of water and noticed Dave in the back yard where her roses were planted. He was carefully heaping mulch around every rose plant.
She smiled and watched her quiet husband say, “I love you.” Sometimes words aren’t needed at all.
…………………….
So until tomorrow…Love comes in all shapes and sizes and in all kinds of sounds…but the best kind of love can sometimes be found in silence.
“Today is my favorite day” Winnie the Pooh
- Two weeks from tomorrow Legally Pink is off and walking/running towards the goal of eliminating breast cancer. We are over halfway to our goal of 1500 for the team…and to break our previous record if possible.
- Thank everyone, who has donated so far…your generosity exceeds anything I have seen.
- Here is the donation info/procedure for your convenience. Bless you!
Mail to:
Susan G. Komen Lowcountry Race for the Cure – 50 Folly Road Charleston, SC 29407
Electronic donation:
( Put the name of a specific team member if you wish to make a specific donation or just Legally Pink…it all goes towards the final team goal…either way. *My name and Anne Peterson’s name are on the roster…but we have an icon popping up instead of our name…obviously some kind of tech glitch…but we are there!)
ichaseferalcats
John Turner
Legally Ohm
Becky Dingle