Daffodils

When Thom (my husband) was a young child, he would always buy his mother Daffodils every Easter. Evelyn (his mother) would put them on the kitchen table and let the sun from the window shine on them.
In 1965, when we got married, he brought her plastic Daffodils, because he knew he might not be able to get them to her ever spring. After our children were born, we would spend Easter with Thom's parents and he would give her a live plant with Daffodils. Evelyn was now living upstate New York on a farm and put the plant under her kitchen window, right where the sun would come up every morning.

Just before Mother's Day 1987, Evelyn died. In the small town she was living in, there wasn't any Funeral Home. So she was laid out in a private home, that was used for funerals across from the Catholic Church. Evelyn would have liked that better than being in a cold funeral home. It was after the blooming season for Daffodils, so we couldn't find any. Any why, after the 1st viewing, Thom wanted to find Daffodils. So we when went from flower shop to Garden shop. On the way to yet another shop, we walked through a 5 & 10. There on a shelf was 3 bunches of silk Daffodils, which would representing Thom and his 2 brothers. We brought them and a big blue vase to place them in.

We went back to the home that Evelyn was in, and rang the bell. The owner was upstairs getting dinner ready, she let Thom in and we placed the flowers right next to her on the floor, facing where the sun was setting. We left, just before my father-in-law came by for a few private minutes with her. What he did when he saw the Daffodils we would never know. As visitors arrived, they was the Daffodils, and said "Evie got her Daffodils, But no one knew who brought them. Until Thom's father came over to Thom and said, "You did this didn't you?"

After the funeral, my father-in-law (Jerry) brought home the Daffodils and vase. He placed them under a picture of Evelyn (that was taken when she was 17) The sun is on the Daffodils most of the day. Now Evelyn can always look at her Daffodils. Years later I was telling that story to a customer of mine. He had just lost his wife, and was very touched by the story. The next morning, when I got to the office, in front of the door was large bunch of Daffodils.

Today, we live in Florida and on our porch we have a bench, we call it the Evelyn Kaufold Memorial Bench, and it over looks our Daffodils in the sun.

If you see a Daffodil, please think about Evelyn and the love she brought to her family.

Carolee Kaufold my be re-printed with proper credit