Cherry Blossoms

Each year for our anniversary, my husband and I buy plants for one another rather than more traditional gifts.

We try to tie them to the year - for example, on our fifth anniversary we bought five dwarf lily plants.

As the years go by, we've realized the need for some creativity. Buying three clematis vines was easy, as was four blueberry bushes. Last year, we picked out two cherry trees that we estimated to each be about 4.5 years old. We were just guessing, but the idea remains ---marking our anniversary with a plant we'll be able to enjoy for the rest of our lives.

Sadly, one of the two has died, but Kevin and I are choosing to see no symbolic message in that. Although, I suppose you could say that not everything in a marriage works, survives, or bears fruit. And you just keep planting, watering, and caring.