View From the Tenth Level

Thursday, December 03, 2009

This morning, my alarm went off way too early. I woke up at 2:30 am and didn't fall back to sleep until about an hour before my alarm went off at 5:25 am. I was a train wreck.

Dan's usually up at the same time and passed me in the hallway to give me a hug. "Happy Anniversary," he said. Our anniversary? What day was it?

"Give me a half an hour to wake up," I pleaded.

So, we both finished getting ready for work. I heard Dan out on the back patio rummaging around. Dan is always puttering around outside.

A little later, I was in the kitchen to open up one of the windows. Dan loves to do fry-ups in the morning, which leaves the kitchen smoky and smelly. While I was opening the window, I surveyed my rose bushes. They grow along the perimeter of the patio. I was looking for a pink rose that I noticed was about to bloom. I wondered how far it had opened over night, but I couldn't find it. Still half asleep, I shrugged my shoulders and finished getting ready for work.

Soon, Dan was out the door and off to work after a kiss goodbye, and I went to get my bag as well to make the mad dash for the train.

There, on the kitchen table, next to my bag, was a rose and a card.

It's been ages since Dan gave me a card for anything. This was special. He remembered our wedding anniversary, even though I couldn't even remember what day it was while still in the throes of a sleep cycle.

And then I noticed. The rose. MY rose. Dan had cut it from my rose bush. The rose bushes that I'd been cultivating for years. It was the first pink rose of this season. And Dan had cut it. I was mortified!

I called him and thanked him for the card and teased him about the rose. His reply? "Well, none of the neighbors have rose bushes."

"Well," I responded, "if you're going to steal a rose, it may as well be from me." And then I went back to read the card again. Dan had written a little personal poem for me.

I told some friends what happened and they laughed. I hadn't the heart to tell Dan that my kids used to do the same thing for me on Mother's Day, except they'd steal flowers from the neighbors' gardens.

Dan says his purpose in life is to annoy me and to amuse me. I wouldn't have it any other way.

Labels: roses, wedding anniversary

posted by Melanie O. at 9:44 PM -

6 Comments:

At 1:06 PM, Ann said…

Awwwwwwww. Congratulations to you both!
At 1:49 PM, Melanie O. said…

Thanks, Ann. We're really going to celebrate tomorrow and I'm looking forward to it. :D
At 6:41 AM, gardenbug said…

Dan remembered your anniversary? He did a romantic gesture? and you are bitching because he cut a rose? You would have cut it and brought it inside, wouldn't you have?
At 8:32 AM, Melanie O. said…

Not bitching - having a laugh! Dan and I both laughed about it.
At 6:56 AM, David said…

Men!
It's a great story :-)
At 9:23 AM, Melanie O. said…

Ha ha David - we're still having a laugh over that one. Dinner out was fantastic - we treated each other to a seafood platter that I don't think even Poseidon could have finished!