My Great Grandpa passed away when I was young. I remember his strength at 90 years old when we played keep away as he sat in his chair in my grandpa’s house. That’s probably my biggest memory of him! Little did I know at the time how my future decades later brings it all back to him!
My Great Grandpa Joe was born after his parents immigrated to Kansas from Sweden. Joe grew up in Kansas and attended business school at Bethany College. His sister was getting married to a traveling lutheran minister from Illinois. My eventual grandmother, Ada, traveled to Kansas from Illinois for the wedding which at the time was a big trip by train. Ada met Joe at his sister’s wedding and I’m envisioning some hearts were moved!
Joe’s heart did move! He moved to Rockford, IL to follow his heart and win over Ada. They married and settled in Rockford, Illinois. It’s a good thing they did or I wouldn’t be here, nor would my mom or my grandpa! Joe was always interested in gardening and had a nice vegetable and perennial patch in the bungalow he and Ada had purchased. During the Great Depression the garden was ever so important! That is where the tiger lily story begins!
The tiger lilies began in Great Grandpa Joe’s garden! I’d like to think the seeds came from Kansas but that’s unknown. These tiger lillies have been alive and blooming ever since and I find that pretty amazing! The flowers bloomed for Joe at his bungalow where he planted them. After his passing the tiger lillies moved to my grandpa’s house in Rockford. When he had to move into an independent living apartment, the tiger lillies moved again to Madison, WI where I grew up and my family lived. My mom ended up staying in the area after attending and working at UW Madison. The tiger lily bulbs moved a few places with my mom in the Madison and Middleton area. She was sure to dig them up and take them with! When my mom moved to Chippewa Falls after we ended up there, the tiger lilies moved again! They are now in my garden and I’m proud to say they love where they are planted.
The thing about the tiger lilies to me besides their journey over the last 100 plus years is their color! It's significant as I was diagnosed with having MS over 21 years ago. Orange is the color that represents Multiple Sclerosis. The National MS Society and the ms group locally in Eau Claire, MS - Take Charge, all use the color orange in their logos and ribbons as its their color. And one of the photos I took in my garden is of Great Grandpa Joe’s tiger lilies that won an award at the Northern Wisconsin State Fair’s photography contest! As little as it seems, it's significant to me! He must be beaming with joy in Heaven! I’m the one with MS and while no one could’ve ever predicted it back then, our paths are laid out before us in purpose when you slow down to notice the significances!
The tiger lilies are about half up at the end of June now. They will bloom the end of July. I will be sure to update you all! And I know my Great Grandpa Joe and my Grandpa Bert are smiling down on the fact that these tiger lily bulbs have been nurtured and are thriving! Life is good!