Our Lawson Family Heritage

Peony (Wikipedia) As a child I would often sit in Grandma and Grandpa Lawson's front yard during the day with them and they would tell me stories. Many of the stories have faded from memory, but sitting near Grandpa's much loved and cared for peonies and roses has not. I can still feel the warm sun and remember the fragrance of the roses in bloom. Rose (Wikipedia) One afternoon when I was in my early teens, Grandma and I were alone in the yard, sitting near the pink roses. She must have been feeling nostalgic that day and I remember her telling me that young women were like the rose. They began as the bud and as they grew they bloomed in their youth and were beautiful, but eventually the flower fades - just as a woman's outer beauty will eventually fade as she grows older. I remember being very surprised at Grandma's analogy - she had always been Grandma to me (she was approximately 50 years old when I was born and probably was in her early 60's at this ...