Flowers For No Reason Are The Best!

Flowers I received 10-25-2011.

I have the most amazing friends of anyone I know.  But one friend, in particular, goes far beyond what many others are able to do.  My best friend, Jack, is a man who was raised to understand the power of a flower.

In Jack's family, it was well known that his mother -- and later his sister -- deserved flowers for special days: birthdays, anniversaries, Mother's Day, Valentine's Day, Christmas, etc.  And Jack's father, Darren, passed on this knowledge to both his sons.  Later, he imparted this wisdom on his son-in-law as well.

Over the years, Jack and his brother continued the tradition of giving beautiful gifts of flowers to the women in their lives.  They joined their father in surprising their mother.  Along with their brother-in-law and father, they would send flowers to their sister.  When Jack's brother, Darren Jr., became engaged, his future wife was showered with flowers from men all around the family.  She once told me that, for about 3 weeks after becoming engaged to Darren Jr., her apartment looked more like a florist's shop than a residence.

Side view of the flowers received 10-25-2011.

When Jack and I became friends, it didn't take me long to notice that the women in his life -- both friends and family -- never went a holiday or special event without an arrangement of gorgeous, fresh flowers.  And so, it was no huge shock to me when I received flowers for the first birthday I celebrated after starting a friendship with Jack.  What has shocked me, however, has been the frequency with which I have received these gifts from my friend.

I get flowers for my birthday.  I get flowers for Christmas and Mother's Day.  For Valentine's Day I get flowers, sometimes accompanied by balloons or chocolates or fruit.  I even get flowers for our annual Friend-iversary!

But more amazing than any of these is when I get flowers on non-days....days that aren't holidays or particularly special for any reason.  I get flowers, sometimes, when Jack knows I've had a rough day or when I'm not feeling well.  Other times, I get celebratory flowers when I've had a particularly great day or have had a small victory or success in some area of my life.

The flowers pictured in this post are flowers I received this past Tuesday.  The card said, "I thought going back to work after a nice 3-day weekend would be a let-down for you, so here are your favorites to cheer you up! Have a great day, and I can't wait to talk to you tonight!"

Perfect. ♥