In Honor of My Mother — And Her Hummingbirds

Some pieces are made for customers. Some are made because you need to make them. My late mother loved hummingbirds. They were her thing—one of those little details that becomes forever connected to someone you love. Long after they're gone, you see that familiar bird and, for just a second, there they are again. This layered hummingbird and rose was made in honor of my mother and her hummingbirds. Layer by layer, individual pieces of wood come together to make something that couldn't exist from any one piece alone. There's something about that which feels appropriate for a memorial. A life isn't remembered by one moment. It's thousands of little memories, ordinary days, favorite things, stories and tiny details that somehow come together to represent a person. For my mother, one of those details will always be hummingbirds. And this is one of the reasons A Father's Heart Engravings exists. Not everything we make needs to commemorate a major event. Sometimes something as simple as a bird, a flower, a phrase, or an object that somebody loved is enough. Because when something reminds you of someone you miss, it's not just a hummingbird anymore.