A Dedication

     For my first post I have sat here and tried to think of what I wanted to talk about. I've been ho-humming about what I might want to discuss with the world. I even started on a different topic, one that I will revisit soon because it needs to be talked about. But for my very first post, it will be a dedication.

     My uncle, Lon Rombough passed away this last Winter. In a lot of ways he was an inspiration to me. In a lot of ways he still is. His death hit me much harder than I knew it would, and I keep thinking about how I just want to talk to him about all the work I've been doing lately. I want to impress him and ask him questions.

     But why does he matter so much to me? Let me start with this: I was going to go into botany many years ago. It was what I would tell people I was studying when I got to college. But life has a way of changing on you when you least expect it. Without going to deep into why, I stopped studying botany after 2 years of being in college; but I never really stopped loving it. Raising and studying plants is fascinating to me. There is so much of what I learned, of what I love that I still carry with me.

      Lon is a representation of what I could be, of where my life could've gone. He had many flaws, but he was a good person. A good husband and a good father. I want to be that to my children, I want to be the educator. He would never hesitate to teach, and though, like many who are experts at their craft, was not humble about what he knew, was still a great educator.

      I draw much inspiration from him, and I will carry it with me through life. He did, in the end, what I hope to do in my life, he left an impression on the world.

Lon's website and business (now run by Susan and Jeff Rombough, my aunt and cousin):

http://www.bunchgrapes.com/

Lon's obituary:
http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/statesmanjournal/obituary.aspx?n=lon-rombough&pid=155932032


Next time:  Sarracenia Northwest