Flowery Affection

"Ooohh...red roses! What's the special occasion?" Eager to hear his response, the petite, white haired cashier smiled with her eyes at her tall, young, manly customer purchasing a dozen roses. A smile spread across his face as he said, "Wedding anniversary." This delighted the elderly cashier. "That's so wonderful, dear! How many years?" The young man dawning a tattered ball cap and workman's boots - hardly the flowery type - replied that this was his third wedding anniversary with his wife.
The cashier was genuinely happy for the fledgling couple. The adventure of marriage so new and fresh. Before she sent the man on his way with his token of affection she looked straight into his eyes and, along with his receipt, offered a word of advice. "Now remember, every girl wants flowers. Sometimes just for no reason at all. So make sure to get her flowers all year round, okay?" Her look was serious. This piece of wisdom was for his own good and the harmony of his home. He smiled, nodded and promised to follow her instructions.
I was next in line and as I approached the cashier she smiled and shook her head as she declared, "My boyfriend never buys me flowers!" The cashier, easily seventy-five years old and long past the typical dating phase of life, was clearly frustrated with her companion's lack of romanticism. She went on to tell me that he has never, not once, purchased her flowers. According to her, he never would even consider such a thing. This is a sore spot in their relationship because she is a woman who wants flowers. Particularly roses and preferably at random. She wants flowers when there is no special occasion to celebrate or anniversary to recognize. And not once had her boyfriend of three years ever presented her with a bouquet of anything. Not even a bundle of milkweeds and sunflowers. The absence of flowery affection was undeniably a disappointment in her otherwise comfortable and content relationship.
As my cashier turned gal pal scanned my items and finish my transaction she carried on with her lover's lament. "Every girl wants flowers. We all want those special little acts of love that show he's been thinking of us."
I had to stop myself from responding with an, "Amen, sister!" Gail, the name of my cashier relationship guru, hit on a profound truth. Single, married or three-years attached to a passionless pragmatic, every girl wants to know she is thought special and loved dearly. Because every girl is.
I left the grocery store single, without a bouquet of roses waiting on my kitchen counter but the moment I reached home it dawned on me that my token of affection was waiting in my front yard. A flowering tree greeted me the moment I maneuvered my car off the street and into the driveway. Tulips lined the front of the lawn. A lush bed of soft grass was sprawled out in front of the house, encircling the great big sycamore tree creating shade under its lush canopy of green leaves.
Rose bushes, tomato plants, daffodils, lilacs and pine trees were all waiting for me when I returned home. Each one was a sweet expression of God's matchless love for me. In every petal and plant my tender-hearted Heavenly Father had thought of me and desired to shower my life with flowery demonstrations of His affection.
If today you find yourself without a companion, an anniversary or a dozen red roses look out your window. Take a walk in a park. Look around and see that all around you there are displays of God's unmatched love and affection. God cherishes you. On every tree, growing in every flower is a message of His endless love.
Don't you feel special?