When my mother died, I was fifteen years old, and I was devastated. I couldn’t live in a location where everything reminded me of her all the time when she passed away, so I made the decision to leave the country.
I discovered that my father had remarried while I was living overseas for two years. I had decided not to go to their wedding, but I didn’t have anything against this woman—especially since I didn’t know her.
I learned later, when talking to my brother, that my stepmother was slowly removing my mother’s memories from our home. She had even entrusted others with her possessions. The fact that my father hadn’t spoken or taken any action to stop her startled me the most.
I began to feel a little bitter toward this woman. I made the decision to return home one day, but I kept it a secret from my brother and father. Prior to going back home, I decided to pay a visit to my mother’s grave.
I saw a woman digging around the gravestone when I first arrived at the cemetery. I assumed my stepmother was the only possible culprit. I hurried to find out what she was up to.
She instantly stopped what she was doing and put her hands behind her back as she noticed me.
I couldn’t just stand there and not act, and I was horrified by what I learned when I talked to her.
She paused, then lowered her eyes when I asked her what she was doing.
With timidity, she answered, “I… I was planting tulips.”
I had a weird sense that was a mix of interest and bewilderment.
“Your mother loved these flowers,” she continued.
She would plant them here, next to her tomb, each year.
I wanted to cultivate what she liked as a way to honor her.
A weight gradually left my chest as I gazed at the little tulip shoots that were starting to poke their heads above the ground.
In actuality, she was acting out of love and respect for my mother, even though I had assumed she was deleting everything about her.
She explained that she had frequently witnessed my mother tending to this little garden for hours on end.
Without informing anyone, this was how she preserved her memory.
I was very moved by this gesture.
