romance

so i'm the biggest valentine scrooge on earth. everyone who sent me an SMS today got this in reply -- "BAH HUMBUG!"

but two separate incidents happened today that shows there is still romance in this world, and i'm glad they happened near enough for me to witness them.

my dad is the most unromantic man on earth. for their 35th wedding anniversary, he wanted to take my mom to dinner in iceberg. iceberg! after 35 years of marriage! so i was surprised when he texted me on the morning of february 13th, with instructions to buy my mom three long-stemmed red roses for him. that was a shock, as i cannot remember, in my almost-32 years on earth, my dad ever getting my mom flowers.

so he leaves the roses on my mom's breakfast plate this morning, and the first thing my mom says when she sees the roses is -- "wow, my son, what a big spender." imagine her shock when the flowers were from my unromantic dad, and not from my brother. she sends me an SMS after she got the flowers, telling me that my dad can still manage to surprise her, and that there will always be hope.

my 87-year old lolo has been married to my 82-year old lola for the past 61 years. he had a little stroke a few years ago, leaving him having difficulty walking and talking. but every valentine for the past 61 years, without fail, stroke or no stroke, he goes to the dangwa bus station, to personally choose the best 24 red roses in the flower market, to give his girl on her birthday, which falls on valentine's day. he shuffles around, and is hard of hearing, and mumbles most of his answers when we try to strike up a conversation with him. but my lolo still manages to give my lola the most beautiful flowers in the world on her day.

to my unromantic dad and my romantic lolo, thank you for reminding me that there is still romance in the world. to my mom and my lola, you are the luckiest girls this valentine.