By my Valentine

Approximately 250 million flowers are sold on Valentine’s Day. It is the biggest flower-selling day of the year. Out of the millions of flowers to choose from, Red roses are the number one choice. If you don’t order early enough, you can select any other flowers, but the red tulip is the second most popular.

As a mother, I can remember helping my daughter, Emily, get all the Valentine’s cards ready for her classmates, making sure make each student in the class a card, Always checking the list of names twice. I can remember when I was in school seeing some not get as many Valentine cards as others. They were always sad.

The special day can sneak up on many, and they almost forget to buy that special card, candy, or stuffed animal.

When I think of Valentine’s Day, I think of my Dad getting my Mom a dozen red roses and a big box of candy every year they were married. As he got older and was not driving, he would call me the day before and ask me to check out what florist had the freshest and most beautiful flowers at a reasonable price. He was all about a good deal.

Dad shared many stories, but putting off buying Valentine’s candy after Valentine’s Day was among his many stories. He said he was talking to the owner of the local pharmacy on the square in Lawrenceburg, Tenn., on Valentine’s Day. The owner said if he waited until the next day, the beautiful heart-shaped candy box would go on sale. He could save half or more if he bought it the day after. He always tried to save money; it did not matter what he was buying, probably because he grew up during the Depression. Plus, at that time he had three children under the age of four. He thought about it but decided to buy the largest heart-shaped box of candy and give it to Mom, and he bought one every Valentine’s Day until he died at the age of 91. He also would buy her a dozen beautiful red roses. Sometimes, he had them delivered, and other times, he would bring them into the house, hiding the big, beautiful boutique behind his back to surprise my Mom. They were always beautiful and smelled wonderful.

I still can picture my sisters and brothers waiting for Mom to open the box of candy. We all wanted a piece of the delicious candy – Russell Stovers. The big assorted box had all different kinds of candy and to us kids, some of it tasted just awful so we had to pinch it to make sure it was the good kind, which didn’t make the box of candy to pretty.

It is sweet to remember how two people love each other so much. My parents were married for 61 years.

So, many young people to buy their special Valentine a gift or gifts. It may be flowers, cards, stuffed animals, or candy. Some spend quite a lot of money, buy everything I mentioned, and take their Valentine to a lovely, sometimes expensive restaurant.

Love is very special when you find someone to share it with.