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Terri Webster Schrandt

Sunday Stills: #Reunited for Love

If you read last week’s post, you’ll remember that I visited Yosemite NP in early August with family to scatter my mother’s ashes, who passed away in March 2020. Please indulge me a bit more as I share more about our time together to convey this week’s theme, “reunited.”

memorial photo
Remembering Mom

A Pandemic Passing

Because Mom passed in early March, the pandemic closures had not happened yet, and we were able to be with her in San Diego when she passed. 2020’s pandemic kept countless people from being with loved ones who were seriously ill or passed away through mid-2021, depending on where you lived.

Her wishes were to be cremated and then have her ashes scattered in Tuolumne Meadows of Yosemite National Park. Because we still lived in California, we agreed that we could meet in the summer of 2020 to make it happen. My sister-in-law secured the permit. Then, BOOM, the pandemic caused California to shut down on March 18th.

In August 2020, pandemic travel restrictions were lifted, but some restrictions remained (masks, social distancing, etc.). Only part of my family gathered in my mom’s town near San Diego at the local community center and park, where we had a commemorative brick made to honor mom’s life.

Mom's Brick
Memorial gathering

Living in Sacramento then, I couldn’t make the trip, so I had to watch the small family memorial through Zoom and photos. In November 2020, as we were selling our Sacramento home, we drove to San Diego, where I finally saw the brick myself. That helped with some closure.

family wearing masks
Masked and Social Distanced in 2020

In 2020, every member of my family took the opportunity to make new real estate choices, whether refinancing, selling, and/or moving. All these geographic moves scattered us across three states, making gathering to finally memorialize Mom complicated.

“Dreams are the seeds of change. Nothing ever grows without a seed, and nothing ever changes without a dream.” – Debby Boone

All About Mom

I love this image of Mom, taken in 1979, standing at Vernal Falls in Yosemite Valley. Notice her short shorts, cute figure, and rucksack. She was 40 in this picture. She was the original Rucker (rucking is a newish fitness option—walking while carrying weight on your back).

Instead of calling it a backpack like ordinary people, she called it her rucksack. I used to tease her about it. And, of course, she had a paperback with her. Who knew she would be a trendsetter 40 years later? 😉

woman wearing shorts
Mom in 1979

“Summer backpacked with her dream to reach a place forever green.” ~ Angie Weiland-Crosby

Let the Event Begin

Early this year, we coordinated with family to meet in Yosemite in August. We were literally all reunited for this event, four years in the making.

I flew from my home in Eastern Washington to California’s San Francisco Bay area to stay overnight with my oldest daughter. The next day, we drove through Yosemite National Park to the town of Lee Vining, a 20-minute drive to the Tioga Pass entrance into Yosemite.

two women in yosemite
Me and my Oldest Daughter at Yosemite’s Tunnel View

It was a thrill to be reunited with my daughter and step foot inside Yosemite Valley once more—this was my 26th time entering the national park!

Once we arrived in Lee Vining, we met for dinner, where several of us shared gifts. My youngest daughter made gift bags with Mom’s picture, handmade beaded bracelets, and Mom’s favorite “red-red” lipstick, as she used to call it. We were encouraged to wear the bracelets and red lipstick while hiking to the Tuolumne River the next day.

group of people
Group shot of the family after dinner

My sister-in-law brought small containers to hold the ashes for those who wanted to spread them in various areas. She also provided stickers to decorate the plastic containers. This is mine, captured with my bracelet and mom’s urn.

plastic container

I had the bright idea of posing our braceleted hands together, and someone else added that we should do this over her urn before we scattered the ashes.

Hands
Hands Reunited for Mom

On Saturday morning, we caravanned in three vehicles to Tuolumne Meadows, loaded with ice chests and provisions to spend the day there, honoring Mom and our family. We parked and then hiked for 30 minutes to the favorite fishing spot dubbed “the Cascades” by Mom years ago.

river and evergreens
Tuolumne River meandering through Tuolumne Meadows

I was elated to be reunited with this area I had not seen since I was 17 years old.

woman celebrating a river
Reunited with Tuolumne River

Upon our arrival, my brother-in-law announced the time was 11:11 (am)! I shouted, “eleven-eleven, message from Heaven!” realizing Mom was here with us.

This was the first time my son-in-law saw Mom’s favorite fishing spot. And I’d say it was an excellent introduction to Tuolumne.

man enjoying Tuolumne River

3 people at river
Hmmm, where to scatter Mom’s ashes?

Moments later, as we each walked around in our private commune with mom, my youngest daughter placed her grandmother’s picture among some flowers overlooking the “cascades.”

I walked over, took the photo, and immediately sobbed for several minutes. This was why we were here, witnessing the final act of Mom’s physical resting place.

photo on the river
Mom reunited with her favorite fishing spot

After some time spent here, we hiked back and enjoyed lunch in the parking lot. As we prepared to drive back toward Lembert Dome for another meadow walk, a thunderstorm began, typical of summer afternoons in the Sierra Nevada Mountain Range.

“And the rain comes washing clean, on the summer of my dreams.” ~ Kathy Mattea

Mountain thunderstorm
Rain-Soaked Lembert Dome
two women
My lovely daughters

We didn’t walk into this part of the meadow due to lightning and thunder. We stopped at the footbridge and…

Ashes Loosed!

We said one last goodbye to a beautiful woman, wife, mother, sister, auntie, and grandmother who embraced life, nature, and her family.

Let the Legacy Continue

Beginning in 1970, my parents took us camping every summer to various national parks. They created a leisure legacy for their children and our children, perhaps for future generations. This is why we chose the high country of Yosemite to honor Mom.

family gathered around a log
Reunited with Mom

“Climb the mountains and get their good tidings. Nature’s peace will flow into you as sunshine flows into trees. The winds will blow their own freshness into you, and the storms their energy, while cares will drop away from you like the leaves of Autumn.” — John Muir

I will never forget being reunited with my family—brothers and their partners, daughters and their partners, and nieces—on the almost holy ground of Tuolumne Meadows to honor my mother’s life. Thank you for reading this long post.

brown swatch

Sunday Stills Photo Challenge Reminders

The Sunday Stills weekly-themed photo challenge is easy to join. You have all week to share and link your post. Please use your own original images, whether new or from your archives.

  • Remember to title your blog post a little differently than mine.
  • Please create a new post for the theme or link a recent one.
  • Entries for this theme can be posted all week.
  • Tag your post “Sunday Stills.”
  • Don’t forget to create a pingback to this post so that other participants can read your post.
  • I also recommend adding your post’s URL to the comments.

Sharing for Marsha’s Wednesday Quotes: Change

Please share your interpretation of REUNITED this week. Creativity is encouraged, so please share your own photographs (old or new), poems, original short stories, and music inspired by the theme. Join me next week as we explore “Before and After.”

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96 comments

  6. Such a lovely tribute to your mom! She looked like a real ‘go getter’ in her day. 🙂 It’s wonderful the whole family was able to finally gather in such a beautiful place to say goodbye. COVID disrupted all of our lives for too long! My best friend had terminal cancer and passed away in 2021. Because of COVID, I wasn’t able to see her nearly as often as I would have liked.

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  7. What a beautiful post, and may I say ‘beautifully written, to, Terri.’ The love shows through all the words and pictures. Although it must have felt like a sad day, the love and beauty are very evident. And everything you and your family did to make it a Memorial Day is wonderful.

    Someone once told me that when someone’s ashes touch the earth, a new star is born. That thought has always remained with me..

    In the UK, we call backpacks ‘rucksacks’, so that may be where your mother picked up the word from. The photo of her from 1979 takes me back to the fashion of the day. I remember shorts being very short for both men and women back then—no wonder the tops of my legs always got sunburned.

    My father passed away in October 2020 during the pandemic. He didn’t have covid, but only 20 people were allowed to attend his funeral, and we were not allowed to hold a wake. It was such a sad time, but he remains in my thoughts every day.

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    • Thank you so much, Hugh! My mom was a character, genius level in IQ. She pushed all her kids to our limits in learning and activities for which we are ever grateful. The Germans call them rucksacks, too (ruck means back). She just always wanted to be different and she was.

      I’m sorry your father died during the height of the pandemic Hugh. I felt sorry for so many who couldn’t be with their loved ones in the hospitals. Somehow my mom knew and wanted to make sure she got the attention. LOL.

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      • Good for her, Terri. There’s nothing wrong with what she wanted. We all crave attention, even after we are gone (I believe). It’s human nature to want attention and to be with others. From what I’ve read in your post, your mum got gold medal attention. What a wonderful woman she was. I wish I’d had the pleasure of having met her. I’m sure we would have laughed a lot.

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  9. What a beautiful tribute to your mom, Terri, and thoughtful send off in the Tuolumne Meadows. I appreciated all the care that went into the planning. Your mom probably loved seeing everyone together to remember her in such a beautiful and meaningful place. ❤ The photo of you and your daughter at the “tunnel” viewpoint is amazing. What a sky!

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  13. How special to be able to gather together to remember your mother, and in such a beautiful place. We will be driving through the Tioga Pass on our California road trip next month; I will make a point of greeting her as I pass.

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  17. Such a beautiful post and tribute to your mom. How wonderful that you all could gather in one of her favorite places to honor and scatter her ashes. I do love the photos, all of them, and especially the one of you and your daughter. I’m also reminded of our visits to Tuolumne Meadows, hiking on the polished granite in the high country. We camped there once years ago (in a tent,) and I remember waking in the night, hearing other campers trying to scare away a creature in the campground, raccoon or bear, we’ll never know for sure!

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  20. This was a beautiful and heartfelt post Terri. Your mom was beautiful – I like the picture in the short shorts and rucksack as she looked so young and energetic. The scenery is beautiful here – I can see why it was a favorite fishing spot. How nice to reunite your family like this, even if it was for a final goodbye to your mom. I have said to fellow bloggers many times that it is wonderful to have siblings – something to share in common, something I never had and I have no family members, so I do feel I have missed out over the years. You were blessed to reconnect.

    Well here is my post … we were having a stormy day and evening as well. I prepared my post about 10 days ago and thought it was still in draft, though I had set the time for it to publish. I got online then wanted to add your link only to find it had already published … the new way of scheduling posts – going forward I don’t plug in any time I guess. My post is different as it was a reunion 50 years ago.

    When you turn back the hands of time ….

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    • Thank you, Linda! I really needed to express my feelings about mom and the symbolism of spreading ashes. I’ve never participated in this before and I was surprised by how overwhelmed I felt. You can come visit me and I’m happy to share my family with you!
      I’ll read your post first thing in the a.m. We had a big potluck this evening with the Schrandt side while my brothers are still here. I approved your link. Thank again, my friend!

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      • I did not participate in the scattering of my mom’s ashes as I can’t cross over the border because my passport expired. The woman who did this for me offered out of the blue and was gracious about doing this honor and she e-mailed me photos of the pond which does give me comfort. I can imagine it would be an emotional moment, especially with your family around you. It is nice having family – the bonds are something special to be treasured if nothing goes awry in the relationships. Being an only child has its advantages and disadvantages.

        I am sorry for the late reply to your comment Terri. I am getting acclimated to this new computer, which I was forced into using due to WP’s changes to its platform … but wow, it is nice to type a comment and not have it rejected or have to save it in a note in case I get the message “you already said that!” It took me an inordinate amount of time to do this Sunday’s post as WP was rejecting every photo that I e-mailed myself. The secret I found was to load the photos to my media files, not add them one at a time … live and learn.

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      • I”ll have to check it out – he was next in my Reader. I hope the drafts I usually write the day I come home from long walks will be compatible as I wrote them in Microsoft Office 2010 – I suppose they will convert in Microsoft 365. I tried a hybrid today and that did not go over well.

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  22. What a lovely tribute for your beautiful Mom. She chose such a gorgeous place.
    And the Red Red lipstick, my Mom always wore red lipstick!
    Sending you great big hugs to you.

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  28. A lovely tribute to your mom Terri – after all, no matter what things and activities we love, to a mother the family is at the top of every list. For you all to have gathered, which I’m sure was no small feat, is the best tribute you could have offered her. I’m sure she was smiling as you said your good-byes, knowing she’d always be in your hearts.

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  31. What a beautiful post how wonderful for you all to get together and say goodbye to your Mum . We had a similar situation with my husbands mother who was one hundred years old but died of covid, it was all very sad . I am glad it all worked out well for you 💜💜💜

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  38. Just beautiful. A beautiful mom, a beautiful location, a beautiful family reunion. I was doing OK until I got to the picture of the hands with the box of ashes. That got me sobbing. Penny came to lick my face and comfort me.

    My mom died in 2004. We had her ashes too, released them via a cotton container that dissolved, in her lake, out by her favorite mountain.

    I’m glad you got the picture of the ashes being tossed from the bridge. That’s iconic.

    Hugs to you and to each of your family members. It’s hard, even years later.

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  43. What an amazing time and the memories will be part of everyone.
    I loved that photo of your mom at 40. Truly, truly a special time and it’s so wonderful how you all got together for it.
    XOXO
    Jodie

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