I sat down on the living room couch, surprised by my sadness. After all, I should have been elated. That afternoon I’d had my last round of radiation for lymphoma and my prognosis was excellent. And throughout the treatment, I’d been so positive! I’d prayed and meditated, even worn a pink robe with zebra stripes instead of a hospital gown. But now that it was over? It hit me: What if they didn’t get all the cancer? What if comes back?
I couldn’t help but think of my beloved grandmother who had always been so strong and courageous. I hoped that she was thinking of me, too. She’d passed away nearly 25 years earlier, but I thought of her often. For her, pansies with their bright, cheery blooms, meant happiness. Grandma had debilitating arthritis so she wasn’t able to tend a garden of her own, but each spring Mom and I would bring her pots and pots of pansies. From then on, whenever I saw a pansy I thought of Grandma and instantly felt better.
Just then, I heard the mail truck pull up. It took all my energy to get up off the couch and head outside. I came back with a stack of envelopes—some bills and a few cards. I’d been so grateful for the way the cards I’d been receiving from friends and family lifted my spirits. So I sat down again and opened the first one.
“Thinking of You” it read on the cover amidst a backdrop full of pansies. Then, I opened the next card—even more pansies in all colors of the rainbow were on the front! “Pansies Mean I’m Thinking of You,” it read inside. I smiled. I knew, right then, it was a sign that Grandma was thinking of me, too!
I called my parents to tell them. But before I said a word, my father started in.
“The strangest thing just happened,” he said, “Mom and I were driving home from the store, and I made a wrong turn. We ended up in front of a nursery … a nursery with a huge display of pansies. We bought one in honor of Grandma. We can’t wait for you to see it.”
