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Who has known you the longest in your life?  Who has influenced your life and made an effective imprint on the adult you have become?  Who and what do you rely on ?

I fully rely  on my faith in Jesus Christ.     as with out that I would be totally lost . I rely on my   siblings,   my sister and brother as well as their spouses and children.    I rely on my friends ,   as I have a few that mean the world to me and  I would lay my life down for them .  I rely on my  daughter and son in love.   As she is truly the person in the world that knows my thoughts as well as my needs,  as a daughter she is truly the very best. She is   my closest friend ,  and my voice of reason.     My  son in law loves my daughter more than humanly possible ,   he is smart , kind , and able to accomplish just about anything.    He is hard working and always smiling.

I rely on Kenny ,   he is stoic, strong ,  patient and even . He is and forever will be my boyfriend,  my life mate ,  my partner and my love.    I find myself much the opposite as I am not always very stoic,    don’t find patience easy to find ,   as far as even :  what is that ?    I am busy ,  often stressed scattered  and not particularly even in any sense of the word.

These immediate people that are my closest and best.    But there are a few more ,   some of the wisest and strongest,   funniest and dearest I would like to introduce you to them.    For they are some of my Favorite Humans on this earth ….

I would like to introduce you to some of my favorite people .   These people have been in my life through the ups downs,   good~  bad,   down right yucky ,   as well as the joys life has brought my direction.

As I look at the first photo in this post ,   this is the one that made me cry when Mae shared the gallery with me .   These hands,   these hands were the very first to hold me at birth ,  ( my mom’s with the chipped nail polish next to the bottom .  )   Hers  are strong hands,   creative in EVERY sense of the word.   They are tender hands that have wiped a lot of tears as they rolled off my face ,   and happen to be right now…..   These hands taught   me right from wrong .  My Mom’s hands taught me how to work hard   to garden and cultivate flowers. Her hands taught me to cook and bake ,  to scrub and polish.      They taught me how to skip stones in the creek and swim fast far and deep.   These  hands of my mom   loved my dad………………  I miss him and wish I had a photo of his hands like this one.     I will treasure these images always.

The hand on the very bottom is my Uncle Jack’s .  Aside from my brother ,   he is the male in my life that has been constant ,   strong and with me through out my  journey  so far .   Loosing my dad as a  young adult,  my Uncle Jack has filled in as a dear companion of whom I can call on to deliver flowers to Atwater ,   or take a wedding through construction!   He can fix anything and create a cake stand out of a stump of wood !     He is so very dear ~  He is my mom’s brother .

The next hand in the pile has a ring on her pinky…… This my friends is my dear Aunt Shirley.     She is a prayer warrior.    She has prayed me through earthquakes,   major moves and raising Holly.   She loves to laugh and has taught me to be ok wherever I am .  I  summered with Aunt Shirely when I was a kid and we beached,   swam ,   explored , collected and loved.   She understands my creative crazy heart and she embraces it .    I know it is because of her love of jewelry I am infatuated with a big chunky bracelet , a cool ring and of course a great big purse!   We don’t have the opportunity to be together often ,  but any time I need a chuckle ,   or to shed a tear  ,    she is just a phone call away and she always greets me with a ” hey jenny girl “…..    She is my mom’s sister.

The next hand in the pile is graceful ,   so soft ,   so gentle ,   so encouraging … A simple wedding band on her ring finger,   This is my loving Aunt Laura.    She is the love of my Uncle Jack.   She is the momma to my dearest longest friend ,  my cousin Jill and I were raised as if we were sisters kind of.    She is smart , hard working and loves to dance .    She giggles like a teenager still and she is quiet in her ways.   But strong and so graceful.   I love to laugh with my Aunt Laura and  have her spend time in my shop ,  as she worked at the Flower Shop I started at so many many years ago.    She understands my work here.   She is an encouragement and a cheer leader and I have no doubt a prayer warrior.

The top hand of the pile is the one that has known me the least amount of time.    This is the hand of my Dear Richard.    My Mom’s husband .   He is strong and loving ,   kind hearted and a loving grandpa and great grandpa.   He loves his family and he loves my mom.  His hands are crooked and worn ,  worked hard and held strong.     He and I built my chicken coop !   I love him.

I love these hands and I love the work they have done.   In my life and longer.   I love the lives they touch and the beautiful souls they have raised.   I love the way they love,  I love the way they are tender and caring.   I love what they have meant in my life.   Being a strong sense of reason when needed as well as a compassionate hug when the world seems to be falling apart.   The wisdom they bestow as well as the prayers they have raised have blessed my life !

thank you Mae for these images.  It is exactly what I was looking for .   I will cherish them forever.