I walked up the front sidewalk of my house. I had an orchid cradled in the crook of my arm, my other hand up by the flowers to protect them from the wind.
I was struggling to get the house key out of my pocket when my son Alex opened the front door.
“Thanks!” I walked by him and placed the orchid on the side table in the living room. I stepped back to admire it’s placement then looked back at Alex. “Well, what do you think?”
Alex shrugged his shoulders. “It’s pretty.”
“I know!” I couldn’t help but smile as I unzipped my jacket and looked around the house. “Everything looks so depressing once the Christmas decorations get put away. So, I thought getting an orchid would give me something pretty to look at for the next few months.”
“That’s going to last a few months?” Alex asked.
“It should.” I tossed my jacket on the couch and went over to the plant. “That’s why I only buy them when most of the flowers haven’t bloomed yet.” I gently touched one of the unopened buds. “This one should definitely last a couple of months.”
I walked over to the hallway, where our bedrooms were, and turned around. “I miss December when I’d get up in the morning and your Dad would turn the Christmas tree lights on for me.” I pointed straight ahead. “ It was the first thing I’d see when I went to make my cup of tea. It was the perfect way to start my day.” I pointed over to the orchid. “Now, when I get up I’ll see that!” I looked over at Alex. “I’m hoping it will help me get through the rest of this winter!”
Alex looked confused. “But isn’t it dark when you wake up? I thought that’s why you liked seeing the tree lit.” He pointed over at the orchid. “You won’t be seeing that in the dark.”
“Oh, yeah.” I shook my head. “I forgot that part.”
My husband Steven walked into the room and saw Alex pointing to the orchid. “That’s pretty.” He looked over at me. “Did you just get that?”
“I did.” I went over to him and gave him a kiss on the cheek. “Did I thank you for turning the Christmas tree lights on for me every morning?”
Steven laughed. “You did.”
“Okay, great.” I stepped back and held my hands together in a pleading way. “Because I have another favor to ask you.”
Steven looked guarded. “Okay.” he said slowly.
“When you get up before me can you turn on the light next to the orchid?”
Steven look turned to confusion. “Sure. Why?”
“Because it’s going to be a long winter and I’d like to see something beautiful first thing in the morning.”
Steven started to laugh. “Well, I can fix that in another way.”
Now I felt confused. “How?”
“I can switch on the bedroom light when I get up and you can see me!”
“Are you nuts!” I cried. “You get up at like 5 o’clock in the morning! That’s over an hour before my alarm goes off!”
“Okay, fine.” Steven sighed. “I’ll turn the living room light on for you.”
“Thanks!” I gave him another kiss on the cheek. “Then when you come into the kitchen for your second cup of coffee I’ll see you then.”
Slice of Life 