Tribute to a Dear Friend

Yesterday I received bad news; my dear friend, Jean, died suddenly on March 3, 2017. I have known Jean for most of my life and always regarded her as my second mother. After I moved from my hometown in New Jersey, we kept in touch through letter writing and visiting each other when we had the chance.

Jean was a vibrant and healthy 88 year old who could run circles around people half her age.She was an anachronism, preferring "snail" mail instead of email and "land line" instead of cell phone. She rode her bicycle to get from one place to another, and was fiercely independent until the day she died.

Among the many things that interested her in life, gardening was her favorite pastime. Her green thumb was second to none, and each year she treated her neighbors to a riot of colorful flowers throughout gardens she planted in every space she could find in her yard. It was her joy to teach other people the secrets she learned that made her garden special. I wanted to give back to her, so two years ago I had the privilege of taking her to Winterthur Gardens to see the peonies in full bloom. It was a most special day for both of us. I am so happy that I snapped this photo of her enjoying these marvelous flowers, some varieties of which she had never seen before.

There is so much more that I could tell you about this amazing woman, but suffice it to say that the world has lost a very special soul who lived to make the world a better place; I will miss her very much.