Flight of Fancy

Faith Baldwin wrote in Face Toward the Spring that "Nothing is lost to us:...not the parents we knew but now know only in our hearts and spirits...."  I find her words comforting as I continue to grieve the loss of my mom in this first year since her death.  Sometimes, however, it's hard to accept the fact that Mom now resides only in my heart and spirit. Recently, I was focusing on my yesterdays with her, flooded with a downpour of grief, when my friend Mary surprised me with a lovely pin of a dragonfly with silver body and iridescent wings.  Mary and I have often talked in recent years about the symbolism of dragonflies, so it was particularly appreciated to receive such a beautiful dragonfly pin from her.  According to the Internet, dragonflies symbolize the poise and wisdom that come with age, the understanding and acceptance of change, the maturity that embraces a deeper understanding of the meaning of life, and the ability to live in the moment, aware of who you are (and who you aren't) and what you want (and what you don't want).  Mary's generous gesture brought me out of my sadness for my yesterdays to all that is beautiful about today, once again allowing me to live in this moment.