It occurred to me recently that our recurring picture of the hand and flower may not be self explanatory as it is to our family, so I will try to convey its importance as best I can. Much of its importance has evolved in retrospect, so that is where I’ll begin.

My husband ,Mayer spent the first 17 years of his life on Okinawa, Japan and although he is not Asian by decent, he has a deep connectedness formed by those early years. To the Japanese, the blossom of a cherry tree or Sakura is the Very personification of perfection.

My home in Massachusetts was where my love of autumn and apples began. To this day, as I make my own applesauce, it always takes me back to my Aunt Edna’s kitchen in harvest season.

Fast forward to when my sons were 9,6 and 3. They had each gotten a tiny little apple tree sapling, no bigger than a stick with a few roots attached. All three were planted. But early on it became apparent that the two trees assigned to my younger two sons were too close to the house and not doing so well. Jared made it very clear that no one was going to touch his tree. Over the following years the Jared tree was deluged by snow,and knocked over in a severe storm which required supports and careful replanting. But like Jared, it continued to grow, two steps forward and one step back.

Although, to be fair, it is a little catty wampum, it began to bloom and bloom furiously when Jared was about 14 years old. Each year, Jared would watch his tree grow and bloom as we watched him grow and bloom as well.

As as a family we have had the opportunity to share our family’s various talents with Japanese centers for children and adults with learning disabilities including autism. We needed a logo, a touchstone for our endeavors. By this time, the little tree that could had come to dominate our front yard, shading Jared’s room in the summer, delighting him with blossoms in the spring and dropping apples all summer and autumn long. One spring evening Jared was showing us how beautiful the tree was. He cupped a blossom in his beautiful artist’s hand and a star was born. It was the perfect blend. Apple rather than cherry blossom. Similar but unique, held by the loving hand that had believed in it for so long. An image that touches my heart, our hearts whenever we see it. Embodying so much of our family’s journey.

Sheila Max R.N. (Mom)