Al's Plum Blossoms

I really miss Al. He was our neighbor across the street and he passed on just over 2 years ago. Al was a presence in our lives in a number of subtle ways. When we first began homeschooling, Emma and I did a unit on the American homefront in WWII. As part of the unit, we went over to have a talk with Al, who was a WWII vet and who kept a diary of his missions, right after D-Day. We got to read his diary and see his flight jacket, with “Thelma” (his wife's name) stenciled over the heart. Frequently when we were working in our yard, we’d get a visit from Al, and often received great bags of Italian plums from the other plum tree in his back yard. They made up into great jam, which we returned to him, along with other treats, every Christmas Eve. Al had several strokes over the years, and had back issues, but rarely complained and remained vigorous. We even saw him up on the roof of his house not too many years back. He is our role model for growing older.


I think of Al a lot this time of year because his plum trees are in full bloom and they are spectacular. He planted 3 thundercloud plum trees in front of his house many years ago “because Thelma wanted them”. The picture above was taken 2 days ago. We now have the blossom snow and wafting fragrance that these trees bless us with each year. Thanks to Al.

Al’s Plum Blossoms. Vintage Flowerdrop Earrings (below)