Tribute to Greg Ellis

 

As I mentioned in my last blog post, I lost my son, Greg Ellis in a motorcycle accident on February 2, 2025. I have decided to leave this blog as a tribute to him. You can read through many of the stories of his childhood where he is known as Bubba. Since I won't be posting here anymore, I wanted to let you know where we can still connect in the blog world. You can find me on my gardening blog:   Gone Gardening

I will probably do the Insecure Writers Support Group posts there as well.

Thank you so much for your condolences and kind words. I appreciate you all very much!

Here's a video that celebrates his life. You can even see what he looked like in his "Bubba" years. 

End of the Road

 

I don't know if there's a IWSG question. And quite frankly, I don't care. Bubba is dead. My son, Gregory Ellis, was killed in a motorcycle accident on February 2, 2025 in Hampton, Virginia. Twenty years old.

Even as I write this, it doesn't seem real. 

But it is. I won't go on any more adventures with him. No more walks and talks we used to enjoy. I won't hear his laugh. I won't feel his arms wrapped around me. I won't chuckle at his antics and amazing sense of humor. At least not here in this space, in this time.  

The sense of loss is devastating. No mother or parent should ever have to go through this.

The thing that is getting me through it is faith. Faith that he is in God's loving care. He has peace. No more of life's problems. No more pain. No more suffering. His journey is over and he's safely home. And the belief that when my journey is over, I will be with him again.

I know life is short. I am grateful that I had the experience of being his mom. We had a lot of wonderful times together, and I will hold those dear in my heart. 

Be at peace, Greg. I love you and I'll miss you.

A Jimmy Carter Story

 

Happy New Year! Would you believe I'm a couple days early for the IWSG post? Unbelievable! Today's question is:  Is there a person you admired as a child and now do not admire as an adult. Hmmm. The person who comes to mind is J.D. Salinger, author of Catcher in the Rye.  I thought the book was well written and admired him as an author. Still do. But, I don't admire him as a person. He wasn't a great father and wasn't always nice to his fans. In his defense, I think he was affected by his time in World War 2. That's when he wrote Catcher in the Rye. I've heard that spending the amount of time in the conditions he experienced normally drives people insane. Maybe this happened to him. What about you? Anyone you used to admire and now don't?

Now for my Jimmy Carter Story.

As you may know, I live in Atlanta, Georgia. My husband is from Valdosta, Georgia. He's had several encounters with Jimmy and his family. Here's one of my favorite stories:  The year was 1974. Jimmy was visiting one of his best friends from college who happened to live across the street from my husband, who was just a kid at the time. I don't know how it happened, but my husband ended up playing soccer with Jimmy. It was the neighborhood kids versus the adults. At one point, Jimmy kicked the ball right into my husband's behind. They both got a good laugh about it. My husband still finds it amusing. It isn't every day that you get kicked in the butt by a future president of the United States!

If you'd like to read about Jimmy, here are some books I'd recommend:

An Hour Before Daylight by Jimmy Carter    

  The Outlier by Kai Bird

In other news, I had a very restful New Years Day! 2024 was a crazy year, so I figured I needed some R & R! Here are some photos from Amelia Island and Savannah, Georgia.

Wishing you a very happy, healthy and prosperous 2025!