A Portrait Of The Rose Thief As An Elderly Black Man.
This may be the final lesson he teaches me: never buy flowers for a married woman who is not your wife…even if it is your mother.
It was the day before Valentine's Day, and I called my father to brag that I got his wife, my mom, two dozen red roses. I told him they were going to be delivered tomorrow. I was flying to Arizona the day after Valentine's Day. I wanted to avoid hearing my mother talk about how everyone under the sun got her beautiful roses, but it was a waste of money. Then, she would tell me she was glad I did not get them for her.
However, ten minutes later, she would keep returning to the point that my brother or her nephew had given her flowers, but they should have kept their money and given her a card instead.
I had heard this story too many times, so I purchased her two dozen roses at the start of the year when the prices were normal or as normal as they can be for delivered flowers.
My father received this message twice a year for over 60 years. This year, he got her a card.
When I called my old man to brag about what I had done, his mind went to work. At this late stage, my father taught me another lesson I will never forget: don’t buy another man’s wife flowers.
