In Memory of my Maternal Grandfather

MY GRANDFATHER MAKES A WISH

I'm thinking of my dearly departed grandfather, Albert Elmer Herman Louis Melahn, who was born on this day in 1903 (he died in the late 1970s.) The image atop this entry was taken on one of his birthdays in the early 1970's.

My grandmother can be seen helping him blow out his candles and my next youngest sister and I are behind them. We were told to "pose laughing," by my mother, who took the snap-shot when his cake caught on fire. (Our cousin Karl, who is for the most part of camera, is to my left).

My grandma can also be seen the next image which was taken on their wedding day.

MY GRANDPARENTS ON THEIR WEDDING DAY

It is a picture that I've included in a number of prior entries here on Blogger, including one which was published on August, 25th, 2019. I'm their first grandchild and was born on one of their wedding anniversaries.

On another note, my grandfather introduced me to peonies when I was just a toddler  (a copy of a snap shot of me taking in the scent can be seen directly below).

This photo of me sniffing a peony flower that my maternal grandfather is holding is featured in a number of my blog entries; including one I published this past January 24th, 2020, on the anniversary of his death.

 Years upon years later, I had a tree peony in my garden. Details of her flowers can be seen in the next set of pictures.

PEONIES ARE FEATURED IN VOL 1

PEONIES ARE FEATURED IN VOL 1

PEONIES ARE FEATURED IN VOL 1

Though I never gardened with my grandfather, I believe my love of gardening came from him. My urban gardening endeavors in my Manhattan "backyard" are a tribute to him. A partial view of how it looked this afternoon can be seen in the next image...

MY GARDEN IS THE SETTING FOR MY BOOK SERIES

...  and a copy of photo of him with a tree he had just planted in his yard is featured below.

This photo of my grandfather is featured in a number of my blog entries; including my third or fourth blog post which was published on 1-8-2010.

My garden is a place where friends and I have gathered to discuss art, literature, politics, morals, and our common love for helping others.

A love for helping others very likely came from my grandfather. The virtues he had are too many for naming in an FB entry format. It is because of him that I have a great love and respect for the elderly and that I enjoyed doing my volunteer work which was visiting the elderly — especially those who are homebound.

When it comes to the elderly, I'm in agreement with Herb Gardener, the cartoonist turned playwright who had a character in his play (I'm Not Rappaport) say this:

"Old people. They're the survivors, they know something, The very old, they are miracles like the just born; close to the end is precious, like close to the beginning."

My garden isn't the only way I honor my grandfather, for I named my visiting cardinal, Cam, as a means of paying homage to him as well as to my grandmother. (Cam stands for Clara 'n Albert Melahn.) Cam is the narrator of my three volume book series, Words In Our Beak, where the stories are set in my garden and told from her perspective.

These books can be seen in the next image.

WORDS IN OUR BEAK

And to reiterate what I've been saying here on Blogger, "During this time where many people are confined to their homes due to lockdown restrictions (re the coronavirus pandemic), these books (whose stories are set in my rooftop garden) are great to have around as a reminder that there is still so much beauty in our fallen world."