When The Lilacs Bloom

This was a post I did last Spring but I wanted to share it with you once again since it's "Lilac Season."

“I miss you most when lilacs bloom

And leaves catch drops of rain.

The scent of budding lilacs

Sweetly touched by sun again.

I miss you most when lilacs bloom

And summer’s in the air.

Traces of a season spent

With one another there.

I miss you when the days are long

And nightfall fills the room.

But the times I miss you most

Are when the lilacs bloom.”

I wrote that poem for my grandparents many years ago. Whenever it is lilac-blooming season...i always think of them. I'll tell you why... 
There used to be this really beautiful lilac bush in front of their home. Whenever we went there to visit during lilac season..the scent of those lilacs would follow us through the front door and into the house. I loved it. When it was time to leave, my grandmother would always let me cut a bouquet of them...and she would wrap them in tinfoil for the ride home. I kept them long after they dried up and died because they still smelled so beautiful. When my grandparents had to move into an elder housing center, i missed that ritual so much. I asked my parents if we could plant a lilac bush near our front door and we did. But..by the time it grew to the point where it really bloomed, my grandparents had both passed away and i had left for college. On one of my  visits home during Lilac season...i cut a bouquet of them, wrapped them in tinfoil  and borrowed my dad's car to make the long trek to the cemetery to visit them. It became a ritual for me whenever i was home during that time of year. Years later, when my husband and i were looking for our first home, we came upon an old colonial set on a corner lot. We did the "walk through" and checked out every nook and cranny but what "Sold" me on the house was when i looked out the dining room window and saw the Lilac bush in the backyard. It was absolutely beautiful and...as luck would have it...in full bloom! I took it as a sign from above that we would have many happy years in this home and so we bought it. We still live here to this day. Unfortunately, when we were re-locating our driveway from the busy front street to the back...the guys who did the job destroyed my lilac bush. I was devastated and saddened. They took away so much more than my lilacs but...they didn't take away my fond memories of them.  And...to this day..whenever i smell lilacs and see them in bloom i remember my sweet grandparents. I hope you have fond memories of yours.