The beautiful weekend weather was favorable for many observances of Mother’s Day. Spring blooms have outdone themselves this year. The high gas prices didn’t seem to hinder the trips of family and friends. Tag sales were many and even a few picnics were launching a new season for outdoor activities. This Monday morning, I imagine many gardeners will be planting the gifts mothers and grandmothers received.

We had “Mother’s Night” in our family to accommodate the schedules of some members. Laurie came down early Saturday and everyone got together that night. Ben, Wendy’s son, arrived home from the university, concluding his first year at Quinnipiac. Susan came bringing a beautiful plant and Wendy had brought a huge container of geraniums a few days earlier.

The wisteria bush that I brought with me in a paper cup from Monroe has grown into a large and healthy specimen and has finally got one huge bloom this spring. Before the cold fall weather, I managed to prune it properly.

We need rain badly to help the lawns and gardens and water supplies. Laurie said Vermont is also desperate for a good soaking rain, in spite of the heavy snow buildup. She sees many fields that are plowed up as she makes a long commute to work, and said that they are light brown and dry, a concern to the farmers and the orchard owners.

Looking back over the past year, it seems we have had nothing but unusual weather. Last week it was 92 degrees one day and in another day we awoke to a mere 38 degrees.

It is always good to not have to get a meal for a change, and Laurie took me out to eat Saturday night before the rest of the family members arrived. Scott called Sunday morning, his time and afternoon here. He is in Hawaii on a vacation. The day was enhanced also by my favorite Red Sox team winning their game in 11 innings. It was a very nice weekend.

The postal service has announced there will be an increase in some kinds of rates in another few weeks. It probably won’t be too long before some competition on delivery of mail and packages will become an issue.

Someone recently commented on the mail service as “snail mail.” Whatever did happen to airmail service, paid for by purchasing special stamps that sent all the postal items by airplane? We could get letters coast to coast in a short time. Now we pay for priority mail by the pound or ounce, and it is faster than regular mail, but quite expensive compared to a 34-cent letter stamp.

It will soon be time to honor fathers and grandfathers as their special day approaches. By then summer will be well underway. The graduations at all levels will claim our attention and suddenly we’ll be celebrating the nation’s birth on Fourth of July. Time does, indeed, fly.

Last week’s closing words for the column were by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, from  “The Day Is Done.”

Who said, “I shall not be there, I shall pass. Bury my heart at Wounded Knee”?