This picture is from:
http://homepage3.nifty.com/kakitsuka/sketch/pictures/rose.jpg

A Single Rose

“Why did you choose Dad?” I can remember asking my mom that question. We were seated around the table after dinner, sharing all sorts of jokes and stories like we always do every mealtime. Often times, my mom would share stories of her childhood, and tales of the time when she was still dating my dad. Of course it was easy for us to just talk about my dad like that since he’s a seven-hour plane ride away from us.

“I don’t know,” my mom said. “He wasn’t the best looking. He wasn’t rich either,” my mom said with a laugh. “He was still in the military then, and I was a nurse at the base,” she paused. “But, your dad was certainly very kind, and very thoughtful.”

“Really, how so?” My Ate asked.
“Well, he didn’t give me any gifts. No chocolates for Valentine’s Day. No flowers whenever he visited me at our quarters. He didn’t even take me out on any fancy dinners.”
“So, how does that count as thoughtful? He was kuripot!” I said.
“There was this one gift, though,” she said. “It was a single rose.”
“Ah! So he did give you a gift,” I said.
“Yes, but you could tell he just picked that rose out of the garden since it didn’t have a long stem. It was just the flower and maybe an inch long stem. Besides, there were rose bushes growing just outside the soldiers’ quarters. So you could say he was kuripot.”
“And?” my younger sister urged my mom to continue her tale.
“You see, in the base, there are many more men than there are women. Your dad lived with several other men in the same quarters and he told me that most of the other guys were also eying this one rose. They were all waiting for it to bloom so that they can pick it and give it to whomever they want. They were even betting on who would get it first. Your dad, however, beat the other guys to it. He checked on it everyday, made sure it was still there and still in perfect shape, and the moment he saw that the rose was already in full bloom, he picked it and gave it to me,” she said. “Of course, after that, all the other guys in the quarters were pretty bummed they didn’t get the rose,” she told us with a small smile on her face. Even if she didn’t say anything, I could tell she missed my dad even more.

And that was when I understood. That single rose that my dad gave to my mom all those years ago was more than just a flower. It was a precious prize he had won for all his diligence and effort. It was, most of all, a testament of his love. I realized then that although my dad didn’t express his love through expensive gifts, lavish dinner dates, or bouquets and bouquets of flowers, he was able to show my mom just how much he loved her through his thoughtfulness. He was able to express his love even with just a single rose.

Happy 21st anniversary mommy and daddy, and happy 52nd birthday daddy. I love you both so much.