The Yellow Rose

Lex's Roses

My cousin, Lex, planted some yellow roses this spring in honor of Dan. They are taking off nicely!

Yellow roses are an especially poignant reminder of Dan's courage throughout his fight with cancer.  Dan participated in the Livestrong Challenge for 5 years after his liver resection.  (He even missed the Penn State vs. Notre Dame football game in 2006 to participate!) He also served as a mentor in the organization.  The Livestorng Foundation promotes a positive attitude as a major factor in a patients' cancer battle. Dan felt that it was very important to give back to those who provided him with support when he most needed it.

Dan always rode in the 10 mile bike race and never placed further back in the pack than 4th place.  He even won the race a few times. Cancer patients and survivors who cross the finish line at the Challenge are given a yellow rose to celebrate their triumph over cancer.  Like Dan, they are all winners.

Thank you Lex for honoring Dan and for sharing your beautiful roses with us!

 

Dan accepts his victory rose in 2007.

Hot Potato

When Ben and I were still living in an apartment in Delaware, my family joined us one evening for a Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers movie night.  I served burgers and potato salad and onion rings (to tie into the Lord of the Rings theme.) In a spur of Martha-ism, I made a red, white, and blue potato salad.  For some reason, Dan was freaked out by the blue potatoes and refused to eat the salad. Very odd, considering that this was the guy who would eat Mongolian Beef omlettes.

I had not purchased purple potatoes for 10 years but bought a bag of tri colored potatoes today, with the intention of making potato salad.  I brought the water and potatoes to a boil, stepped away for a while, and returned when the timer went off.  I looked into the pot and the water had turned bright blue.  I tried to test the potatoes for doneness and found that all of the blue ones had completely disintegrated in the pot.  The red and white ones were fine. 

It seems that someone was still voicing his opinion about purple potates!

This picture has nothing to do with potato salad but I like Dan's expression.

 The guys on the fishing trip will have to remember this for the potato salad contest in August.

Shane and Dan

This is my Aunt Nancy's favorite photo of Dan.  It has been sitting on the entertainment center in her home for over 20 years.

We spent a lot of time with our cousins growing up... especially the ones on my Mom's side of the family.  There were quite a few times when the kids all piled into my parents' van or the Hops' Chevy Suburban and went on an adventure.  Trips to the zoo, haunted hay rides, the boardwalk, Chinatown and the Philadelphia Light Shows... Whenever I hear of someone not having a pack of cousins, I think that their childhood had to be comparitively boring. Much quieter than mine, anyway!

Four

I'm looking out into the yard, and the candle is flickering in the lantern next to Dan's tree.  Four months have passed since I last saw Dan.  In some ways, those months have crawled.  In others, they have flown. When it's been too hard to come to grips with this, I have looked for ways to remember him in a positive way.

I honored his memory today by eating one of his favortite foods: Primo Hoagies.  I wanted to buy some hot pepper shooters, but they were completely sold out when I got there.  I served these for Dan the first time that he came to the house.  He was the best dinner guest to have over, because he always tried everything and gave honest feedback on whatever was served. I miss seeing him at my table, but I know that as time goes on we will continue to tell stories of Dan, so that he will still be with us in a different way.

The Road Goes Ever On

"The Road goes ever on and on
Down from the door where it began.
Now far ahead the Road has gone,
And I must follow, if I can,
Pursuing it with eager feet,
Until it joins some larger way,
Where many paths and errands meet.


The Road goes ever on and on
Down from the door where it began.
Now far ahead the Road has gone,
And I must follow, if I can,
Pursuing it with weary feet,
Until it joins some larger way,
Where many paths and errands meet.
And whither then? I cannot say.

The Road goes ever on and on
Out from the door where it began.
Now far ahead the Road has gone.
Let others follow, if they can!
Let them a journey new begin.
But I at last with weary feet
Will turn towards the lighted inn,
My evening-rest and sleep to meet.”

― J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings