Monday, September 04, 2006

A Single Rose

The night air is turning cool here on the prairies. We sleep with the windows wide open, so the single digit cold air is still welcomed here.

I can tell it's September because the other night, late into the chill, Lauralea got up and pulled down the big quilt. She loves this part of the year, so I think she's trying to hurry it along. Tonight I'm writing from a refreshingly cool bedroom.

Today is our eldest child's birthday. Johanna has officially turned 19, and if she lived in Saskatchewan, she could now drink legally, which certainly doesn't seem to be a problem in Switzerland.

We had two girls born with nearly a year between them. And I was surprised how much I enjoyed having little girls in my life, they were fun, mostly.

I would load them into the car when their mom needed a break, and off we would go for a Saturday morning, exploring the countryside.

After a couple of years I would pick them up and take them out for lunch at McDonalds. They were trustworthy girls. I could seat them at a table and go off to order lunch for us. Of course I kept one eye on them, but they always sat still, without going exploring. I could trust them, and I liked that allot.

Some kids you could never take out without them being a huge problem and taking the fun out of things, but not these girls.

I loved being their dad, I was always so proud of them. I wanted to do something for them that only their dad would do for them. Some kind of father/daughter connection thing.

So, early on in their little lives, I started buying them a rose on their birthday. Just one, and a variety of colors.

Every year, on their birthday, I would come home with a single rose for them. It was something I wanted to do, as long as I could.

Cause daughters grow up, and things change. Relationships ebb and flow, but I wanted them to know that, even if life got hard, or they considered me a problem father (which they have, and still do...occasionally) that they could know someplace inside that I still loved them.

You do your best, but life isn't easy all the time. Occasionally they have hated me with such a depth that you wonder, I wonder, who we will be to each other when this is all over.

Still, every year through thick or thin, I go in search of a single rose.

This year the search was much more difficult, because Johanna is living in Switzerland. 7000 km's is a long way to get a single rose to travel well.

So, off we go to the Internet. Lauralea's highschool french comes in nicely at this point. She found a florist right in the next town, who delivers to Cernier, and they have a phone number posted on the site.

It took Lauralea a day to screw up her courage and think through some of the words she would need to use. But this morning (Our time) with the flower shop ready to close in an hour for the evening, we placed our call.

I am here to tell you I was completely amazed as Lauralea spoke clear french to the shopkeeper. Well, clear enough to order what I hope was a single rose, delivered tomorrow, to Johanna, living in Cernier, Switzerland.

She was speaking french like a sailor, a french sailor mind you, but it rolled off her tongue like an old hand. She's been holding out on me that's for sure.

And all that to say, I think that one single rose has been ordered for Johanna, in Switzerland, and in the from space it should say, love dad.

Now, I think I'll time this to be posted just before lunch her time, so the surprise isn't spoiled when she reads this post.

Happy Birthday Johanna.

Love Dad.

6 comments:

  1. Happy Birthday, Johanna. It's so refreshing to be able to read your pride betwen the lines.

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  2. It's hard to imagine how fast your kids grow up. You should spend as much time with them as possible. Then you should take comfort in knowing that you are there if they need you.

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  3. [...] week I went in search of The Rose, and I was able to find a small flower shop 20 minutes away who were willing to deliver to the [...]

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  4. [...] it wasn’t even that difficult to do this year. This day in randallfriesen.com historyThe Bourne Ultimatum - 2007Happy 20th Birthday [...]

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