If yall knew mama, she and my dad were big into writing "thank you" notes! So, I guess this is my last art project in her honor. I decided I wanted to design a thank you note that just summed up her essence. I think I nailed it. I found these words...
“Life is amazing. And then it’s awful. And then it’s amazing again. And in between the amazing and the awful, it’s ordinary and mundane and routine. Breathe in the amazing, hold on through the awful, and relax and exhale during the ordinary. That’s just living heartbreaking, soul-healing, amazing, awful,
ordinary life. And it’s breathtakingly beautiful.”
LR Knost
Below is what I added on my Kim Designed Thank You Note
One thing I know is that my sweet mama believed in writing Thank You notes. I saw this quote and I knew how I wanted to create my “thank you’s” to you. In her life, she taught me a thing or two. She taught me that we should treasure “amazing” simply because we all know that amazing doesn’t last. Mama made me see how we could
also treasure the “ordinary and mundane and routine.” Mom thought if I were more consciously mindful about how wonderful “ordinary” can sometimes feel, then I might be more often able to elevate “ordinary” to “amazing”, and downgrade “awful” to simply “ordinary”. And that seemed like a “breathtakingly beautiful” way for me to live my life. She always had a positive spin on any situation.
Thank you for your kindness. She is smiling watching over me
knowing that I have good friends looking after me. Your incredible
thoughtfulness won't be forgotten!
Beyond grateful,
*And this is where I would write the handwritten note to friends and family*
My sister blogged on my mom here recently, check out the post:
Mama's Last Sunset and The Fast Pass to Heaven!
I also did a post on mom while she was living at The Oaks. We wanted her room to be super ArTsY funky.
Happy Mother's Day... Sonny And Cher Ain't Got Nothin' On Bobo and "GA"!
A few years ago I did a post on Growing Up Cochran. This explains a lot about our childhood and what good parents we were blessed with.
Growing Up Cochran
I took the words and put them in Publisher on top of one of my favorite pictures of me an mama in the river. She loved a Sunset better than anyone I have ever known. I was flipping through my Dad's Facebook and found these photos of the sunsets that they had taken over the last 10 years. These have No edits. Just God's paintbrush strokes above the Lake House and a few from a beach trip.
On the day that we had my mom's memorial, the below picture was taken. Mama loved a rainbow. She loved what it stood for the in Bible. She was a definite Baptist through and through. 1965 and I know and yes, we can still sing the Books of The Bible - which we learned in Vacation Bible School!
In the Bible's Genesis flood narrative, after creating a flood to wash away humanity's corruption, God put the rainbow in the sky as the sign of his promise that he would never again destroy the earth with flood (Genesis 9:13–17)
What does the Bible say about rainbows?
I have set my rainbow in the clouds, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and the earth.
I will remember my covenant between me and you and all living creatures
of every kind. Never again will the waters become a flood to destroy
all life
What does a rainbow represent?
A rainbow is often a sign of hope, the beauty after the storm, a pot of gold and good fortune at the rainbow's end.Side note: Yes, we were that family that would follow the rainbow if we had time to try and find the pot of gold at the end - not kidding. Ah, those were simpler times back in Butler, Georgia or as we pronounce it - "Butlaaaah"
What are the 7 colors of God?
God's rainbow, the one that He set in the sky as a sign to Noah, has 7 observable colors in it - red, orange. yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet.
"Roy G. Biv"
Yes, we know lots about color...crazy that she ended up with 2 art teachers for daughters and all 3 grandchildren have a flair for the arts in some form or fashion!
What do rainbows mean when someone dies?
Spiritual awakening:
In many cultures, rainbows are a sign of a spiritual awakening. Seeing a
rainbow at a funeral or shortly after one is a sign that your loved
one's spirit is in its next destination.
I believe that and I know she sent us a sign that day. It was nuts because we were all outside to see it. Bobo, 1965 and Husband, me and Left Brain. Thanks, Mama! We sure did appreciate it.
On my parents anniversary, December 1, she sent a beautiful sunrise. This one made me laugh. Mama was not an early riser but Dad has always been. She knew he would be up early needing something special to counteract how we are missing her. So she created the beautiful sunrise above just for us...It was gorgeous down here in Tallahassee too!
A friend shared this below on Facebook, so I saved it. Went back to read it and decided to share it here in this post as it is appropriate and fitting for the content. Crazy enough it was shared on December 1!
I didn't write this, but very touching.
— You Don’t Just Lose Someone Once —
You lose them over and over,
sometimes many times a day.
When the loss, momentarily forgotten,
creeps up,
and attacks you from behind.
Fresh waves of grief as the realization hits home,
they are gone.
Again.
You don’t just lose someone once,
you lose them every time you open your eyes to a new dawn,
and as you awaken,
so does your memory,
so does the jolting bolt of lightning that rips into your heart,
they are gone.
Again.
Losing someone is a journey,
not a one-off.
There is no end to the loss,
there is only a learned skill on how to stay afloat,
when it washes over.
Be kind to those who are sailing this stormy sea,
they have a journey ahead of them,
and a daily shock to the system each time they realize,
they are gone,
Again.
You don’t just lose someone once,
you lose them every day,
for a lifetime.
This title pretty much sums up my "feels" right now: Sunsets, Rainbows, Thank You Notes And REALLY Missing My Mama This Time Of Year...Yes, we always enjoyed the Christmas Season no matter what stage of life we were in at the time. Grateful for all of the life lessons we learned over the years especially the ones that don't cost much like looking at the sunset and appreciating the sunrise.
Happy Happy Merry Merry and All That Jazz, 1969
Just for giggles...One more thing.... The first Christmas Tree we purchased after she passed...I know she must have been laughing at me and Bobo. Y'all - we had to use self check out with a 10 foot tree at Lowes!!!!! Have you ever heard a such? It truly was a Seinfeld episode. Bobo and I laughed...laughter is good for the soul and I am glad that we are still making those Chevy Chase memories. I know she would want that for us too!
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