Roses for the day of love

It is Saint Valentines Day, 14 February, and the day that lovers everywhere tell their loved ones what they mean to them. So for my post today I send all those in love a red rose for love. The rose has come from my garden and the Champagne cork is from a bottle of Champagne we drank with friends in Paris - a trip we gave to ourselves to celebrate our wedding anniversary in 2005 - beautiful Paris! the city of love!

You said "I love you"

      and time stopped

And your words hung  suspended 

      in the air –

A magic whisper.

You see in the mosaic below a bunch of dried red and yellow roses which hangs on the wall outside my bedroom door. No-one probably knows where they came from or why they hang there. In 1996 I was involved in a boating accident, suffered two crushed vertebrae in my back, was in hospital for 4 weeks, and in a back brace for another 2 months after that. I was extremely lucky to still be walking. I had visitors every day  during that 4 weeks, friends and family who came to visit me, and my room almost looked like of florist shop. I saved these few rose blooms, and hung and dried them, and brought them home and they have hung on the wall ever since. They remind me of the special love that enveloped me during that time. 

As I lay in that hospital bed I had a long time to think about the preciousness of life and what is important to me, and the resolve that you must do and experience all that you can while you can. Life is precious but all too short, and we should make every special day count in our words and actions and spread love and caring around us.   So here is a mosaic of roses. Yes they are faded, and they are edged with tiny spider webs, and a few petals fall off if I touch them, but they are very special and beautiful to me.

And so I send my special valentine to my husband and my beautiful family, all those people who showed me their love in those long days. Thank you.

I played around with different mosaic arrangements through Picasa, and came up this this shuffled look which I thought suited the photos. For isn't life like a deck of cards - you never know what hand you are going to be dealt next - and what is important is what you do with it.

This is my contribution to Mosaic Monday - to see the beautiful work of Mary and other wonderful contributors on Mosaic Monday, please click on the link -  http://dearlittleredhouse.blogspot.com/