Our Valentine’s Day tradition
Today marks the 13th year in a row that I have gotten Sarah three red carnations for Valentine’s Day. When she was a freshman in high school, and I was a junior, our school had a program where you could send carnations to people in their homeroom. Different colors meant different things. Pink meant friendship. Purple meant “Happy Valentine’s Day.” But red, red meant love.
All you had to do was spend $1 per carnation and send a note with a name and homeroom number. I sent a note for Sarah Simpson, with three red carnations, but I didn’t sign it. She had no idea who they were from. She wrote about it on her Xanga (remember that?), trying to guess who they could have come from. One week later I decided to let her know they were from me. I emailed her, telling her that I was the one who sent the flowers and I then asked her if she’d like to be in a “mutually exclusive relationship” because, well, I was/am a dork. 🙂
She said yes. And thus began our journey together.
Here we are 12 years later. The tradition of giving her three red carnations has been fun, and sometimes a challenge due to long distances. But I have always made sure she has received her three three red carnations ever Valentine’s Day.
Stepping Back 