Annie, Shawn, Jim, and I went to the cemetery: they hadn’t seen David’s grave marker. Many graves had wreaths or Christmas decorations. Someone had put an evergreen arrangement at David’s grave. Rows of white wooden poles now mark the rows and grave locations. I think it’s for winter burials so they can locate the gravesites in the snow. I’m grateful for a summer burial. It was comforting to watch the grass grow on the grave all through the fall.
I do miss David today. He was so thoughtful in his gift-giving. I often use the digital scale he gave me and just last night I rolled out some vegan biscuits for supper on a silicone pastry mat from him. They turned out well; I used soy milk. (No, I’m not vegan; Matt is.) It’s strange to only need five of each of the themed gifts Jim and I gave this year. (The theme was Julia Child and included Julia's My Life in France, and DVDs of the original PBS TV show The French Chef and The Way to Cook. Jim had met Russ and Marian Morash in Nantucket some months ago. Russ produced and directed The French Chef and The Way to Cook and they both knew Julia well. They graciously invited us into their home in Lexington and Russ signed DVD cases for each of us.)
I keep thinking about the family photo shoot Ellen did for us a year ago. David looks so chipper, so alive, so happy, a great contrast to December 19th when he had been admitted to the hospital with severe abdominal pain. He returned home December 23rd, in time for Christmas, though he wasn’t eating solid food. Christmas 2014: everyone was together at home for 27 hours.
Merry Christmas!
David and Santa, Christmas 2009
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I've been thinking about you this week. And I love the photos I took of all you Johnstons a year ago. There's a lot of love in those photos.
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