by: LeAnn R. Ralph
I casually glanced down at my hand, but instead of a wedding ring and an engagement ring, there was only the narrow gold band.
"Randy!" I yelped. "My engagement ring is gone."
It was Valentine's Day, and my husband, Randy, and I were on our way from my niece's wedding, which had taken place in one town, to the reception, which was being held in another city about fifteen miles away.
If there hadn't been other cars behind us, I think my husband might have been tempted to slam on the brakes.
Of course, one of the things I have always admired about Randy is his ability to remain unruffled during a crisis. Like that time one winter when the landlord had arranged for contractors to build a sloped roof over the flat roof of a house we were renting, and the next thing you know, the snow trapped between the two roofs started melting, and then gallons of water began dripping into the house and THEN the ceiling caved in…
Or that summer when I had agreed to help teach a one-week summer school course at the university for high school students and had come down with a terrible case of the stomach flu on Monday, and Randy had cheerfully agreed to take my place. All week he divided his time between teaching the class and then rushing home to see if I needed anything…
Or the Thanksgiving right after my father had died and we were hauling home some of my parents' furniture—all that I had left in the world of both of them because my mother had died seven years earlier—and it had started to rain part of the way through our 250-mile journey. Randy stopped the pick-up truck we had borrowed from a friend to cut his shoelaces into pieces so he could tie the tarp down better to keep the furniture dry…
In each of those instances, my husband had been an unshakeable source of strength who came to my rescue.
And he didn't disappointment me this time.
"Where did you have the ring last?" Randy asked as he calmly kept driving.
I thought back over the hectic events of the day —
Let's see…just before we left the church, I was busy buttoning up my niece's train…and before that I was occupied with watching the ceremony and trying not to cry…and before that I had been busy pinning on corsages and boutonnieres while the photographer impatiently breathed down my neck, never mind that he was late getting to the church…
When HAD I last noticed I was wearing the blue topaz ring with the delicate gold swirl around the stone?
That was part of the problem. I was not accustomed to seeing the ring on my finger. A few years earlier, I had decided I would only wear it for special occasions. Between cold weather in the winter and gardening in the summer, I put on hand lotion about ten times a day, but if I don't take the topaz ring off every time, then the little crevices get all disgusting, and yet, I was afraid I would lose the ring if I kept taking if off…
"THAT'S IT!" I exclaimed. "Hand lotion!"
My husband gave me a sidelong glance. "Huh?
"Just before we got to the church, I took off my ring and laid it in my lap so I could get some more hand lotion, but I didn't put it back ON."
By this time we had nearly reached the reception hall.
"Check the floor," Randy suggested.
I frantically thrust aside the floor mat…but there was no ring.
Then I groped under the seat. No ring there, either.
Randy quietly asked the next logical question. "Did it somehow fall into your purse?"
I hurriedly checked my purse. Nope. No ring.
"Could it have fallen into your coat pocket?"
My coat had big, horizontal pockets…but…no ring.
"All right," Randy said, as he searched for a place to turn around, "that must mean it fell onto the ground when you got out of the car."
Fell on the ground!
I could feel my throat growing tighter. "What if somebody drove over it?" I wailed.
"Don't get yourself all worked up for nothing," Randy said soothingly.
"For NOTHING? But — it's my ring…the one you gave me when you asked me to marry you…"
Actually, Randy didn't give me the ring. Santa Claus did. In a crowded mall. In front of a group of parents who were there with their kids. When Randy got down on one knee, everyone applauded…
"We'll find your ring," my husband said. "Don't worry."
Although the drive back to the church seemed to take twice as long, we finally reached the parking lot.
"Now, let's see," Randy murmured, "we were parked over there…"
And before I could manage to unbuckle my seat belt, he had stopped the car, thrown open the door and…
"Here it IS!" my husband shouted triumphantly, scooping the ring off the ground.
If I'd felt like crying tears of consternation before, I felt like sobbing with relief now.
"Happy Valentine's Day," Randy said with a smile. "Hold out your hand."
As he slid the ring onto my finger, however, I noticed HIS hands were shaking. And not just a slight tremor.
I pointed this out to him.
"Yes, well," he said, "it's not every day your wife loses her ring in a parking lot and then you spend the next half hour hoping it didn't get stuck in somebody's tire treads."
I stared at him in disbelief.
Oh, sure. For years I've been under the impression that the man didn't have a nerve in his body — that nothing ever rattled him.
And now this.
Then again, it also means that I have discovered one more reason to admire my husband. Even when he's rattled, he can still think calmly in a crisis.
If only he could teach me to do the same thing.
********************
About The Author
LeAnn R. Ralph is the editor of the Wisconsin Regional Writer (the quarterly publication of the Wisconsin Regional Writers' Assoc.) and is the author of the book, Christmas in Dairyland (True Stories from a Wisconsin Farm) (August 2003). She is working on her next book, Give Me a Home Where the Dairy Cows Roam, which will be available later in 2004. Share the view from Rural Route 2 — http://ruralroute2.com
bigpines@ruralroute2.com
Saturday, March 15, 2008
A Valentine's Day Story
by: Candee Stark
Valentine's Day...the day of love right? Many years ago, 22 to be exact, I was a senior in high school. Just prior to Valentine's Day our student council representative got on the intercom during morning announcements and told us about an upcoming fundraiser.
Student council was going to sell carnations for an entire week. It was further explained that there would be three colors available: red, pink, and white.
Red was to signify love, pink said, "I really like you" and white was for friendship. The carnations could be ordered ahead of time but wouldn't be delivered until Valentine's Day during homeroom. The whole school buzzed with excitement over the prospect of it. Everyone discussed it but the girls couldn't contain themselves as they wondered which lucky girl would get the most red ones. Little snippets of conversations could be heard floating through the hallways:
"I bet she will send some to him!"
"I am going to send her six red ones!"
"Do you think he will send one to me?"
"I am going to get a white one for each of my friends."
"Do you think he will send her a pink one or a red one?"
"I wonder who will get the most?"
The conversations continued in this manner until the first day of sales. On that particular day a certain group of girls started gossiping and acting cruel. I am sure you might be able to imagine the kind of girls I am talking about as they can be found in every high school across America.
They view themselves as pretty, perfect and popular but in truth are very shallow and unhappy individuals. I had a feeling you would know what I meant! Anyway, these girls aimed their barbs towards another girl in our class. This girl was neither homely, nor attractive but she had such non-distinctive looks that she kind of just blended into her surroundings.
In fact when I really think about it, nothing about her looks nor the way she acted warranted much attention. She was quiet and to my knowledge never said anything unkind about anyone. I knew she was a good student because I sat close enough to her in a few of my classes to notice that her papers were always branded with A's when they were handed back to her.
In voices just loud enough to be heard, they mentioned this girl by name and joked that they knew for sure she wouldn't get a single flower. The girl just lowered her head and pretended not to hear but I knew she did. It broke my heart to witness their gross display of humor as they mocked her over and over that day and in fact, for the rest of the week. I toyed with the idea of sending the girl a white carnation but I must admit that I wasn't brave enough. I knew what they were doing was wrong but I didn't know what to do, so like everyone else, I did nothing.
The big day finally arrived and I was excited as everyone else but a little nervous too. What if I didn't have a single carnation delivered to me during homeroom. I knew if that happened, I would die of embarrassment! I had ordered a white carnation for each of my friends and I was secretly hoping that they at least did the same for me. Of course there was a certain boy I was hoping to get one from too!
That day we were told that the fundraiser was a huge success and that homeroom would need to be extended so all of the flowers could be delivered. Each member of the student council was armed with carnations and they roamed from room to room delivering the blooms. I chatted with my friend for what seemed like an eternity before our door was opened for the first time.
We held a collective breath and exhaled in unison as only one flower was delivered, a white one for my homeroom teacher! The student council members continued to come in and out of our room. Our first big delivery was 4 carnations for a boy sitting to my right. I couldn't believe a boy was the first one in the room to get red! The carnations continued to trickle in.
After receiving 3 white carnations and realizing I wouldn't have to die from embarrassment of not getting any, my attention was drawn to the girl next to me. You know the one I mean, the smart one that the other girls had harassed all week. She sat perfectly still with her hands folded in front of her on her desk. I wondered if I should lean over and give her one of my flowers but I didn't want to embarrass her. It was during these musings when I saw three red carnations being placed on her desk. She looked up and smiled but just continued to sit there; she didn't even reach out and touch them! I wasn't the only one that had noticed either; people were starting to whisper and point in her direction.
I could tell the other girls were a bit jealous because not a single girl in the class had received more than one red carnation at this point. Then things really started to get wild. Each time a student council member came in, at least one of the carnations in their stack was for her and they were all red!
At this point as best as I could tell, she had 7 red carnations stacked neatly on her desk. The class started getting a little rowdy and each time a red carnation was placed on her desk, we all cheered. OK, the boys cheered, the girls mostly just glared.
I knew I was witnessing something great and I tried to seek out the "gossip girls" just to see their reactions to this unexpected twist of events. There were three of them in our class and two of them had a few pink and white carnations on their desk and the third had a handful of white ones. I was thrilled by what was happening but I had to also wonder who had sent her all of the carnations....did she have a secret admirer?
My thoughts were interrupted by the crackle of the intercom and the voice of our principal wishing us a Happy Valentine's Day. He went on to explain that all of the carnations had been distributed and then in his long-winded manner, thanked the Student Council for a job well done.
I heard a commotion behind me as one of the "gossip girls" got up out of her chair and ran out of the room. I heard later that one of the boys teased her about not getting any red carnations which made her start to cry. I didn't even feel bad for her as my attention was focused on the pile of red carnations sitting on the desk next to me. What I noticed next was the smile on the girl's face. It truly was a great day!
I don't know for sure but I heard she was given 24 red carnations that day. We don't know who gave them to her but I am glad someone did. I will never forget her nor will I forget that day. Oh, I did fairly well too. I received a handful of white carnations and I got a special pink one. Yes, it was from a guy, not the guy I was secretly hoping to get one from but from a great friend of mine that was hoping to make my day special. And you know what? It was special!
About The Author
If you have been inspired by my story and would like to send flowers to a loved one this Valentine’s day, please visit me at http://www.flowers-and-garden.com/valentines-day-flowers.html
Happy Valentine’s Day!
Valentine's Day...the day of love right? Many years ago, 22 to be exact, I was a senior in high school. Just prior to Valentine's Day our student council representative got on the intercom during morning announcements and told us about an upcoming fundraiser.
Student council was going to sell carnations for an entire week. It was further explained that there would be three colors available: red, pink, and white.
Red was to signify love, pink said, "I really like you" and white was for friendship. The carnations could be ordered ahead of time but wouldn't be delivered until Valentine's Day during homeroom. The whole school buzzed with excitement over the prospect of it. Everyone discussed it but the girls couldn't contain themselves as they wondered which lucky girl would get the most red ones. Little snippets of conversations could be heard floating through the hallways:
"I bet she will send some to him!"
"I am going to send her six red ones!"
"Do you think he will send one to me?"
"I am going to get a white one for each of my friends."
"Do you think he will send her a pink one or a red one?"
"I wonder who will get the most?"
The conversations continued in this manner until the first day of sales. On that particular day a certain group of girls started gossiping and acting cruel. I am sure you might be able to imagine the kind of girls I am talking about as they can be found in every high school across America.
They view themselves as pretty, perfect and popular but in truth are very shallow and unhappy individuals. I had a feeling you would know what I meant! Anyway, these girls aimed their barbs towards another girl in our class. This girl was neither homely, nor attractive but she had such non-distinctive looks that she kind of just blended into her surroundings.
In fact when I really think about it, nothing about her looks nor the way she acted warranted much attention. She was quiet and to my knowledge never said anything unkind about anyone. I knew she was a good student because I sat close enough to her in a few of my classes to notice that her papers were always branded with A's when they were handed back to her.
In voices just loud enough to be heard, they mentioned this girl by name and joked that they knew for sure she wouldn't get a single flower. The girl just lowered her head and pretended not to hear but I knew she did. It broke my heart to witness their gross display of humor as they mocked her over and over that day and in fact, for the rest of the week. I toyed with the idea of sending the girl a white carnation but I must admit that I wasn't brave enough. I knew what they were doing was wrong but I didn't know what to do, so like everyone else, I did nothing.
The big day finally arrived and I was excited as everyone else but a little nervous too. What if I didn't have a single carnation delivered to me during homeroom. I knew if that happened, I would die of embarrassment! I had ordered a white carnation for each of my friends and I was secretly hoping that they at least did the same for me. Of course there was a certain boy I was hoping to get one from too!
That day we were told that the fundraiser was a huge success and that homeroom would need to be extended so all of the flowers could be delivered. Each member of the student council was armed with carnations and they roamed from room to room delivering the blooms. I chatted with my friend for what seemed like an eternity before our door was opened for the first time.
We held a collective breath and exhaled in unison as only one flower was delivered, a white one for my homeroom teacher! The student council members continued to come in and out of our room. Our first big delivery was 4 carnations for a boy sitting to my right. I couldn't believe a boy was the first one in the room to get red! The carnations continued to trickle in.
After receiving 3 white carnations and realizing I wouldn't have to die from embarrassment of not getting any, my attention was drawn to the girl next to me. You know the one I mean, the smart one that the other girls had harassed all week. She sat perfectly still with her hands folded in front of her on her desk. I wondered if I should lean over and give her one of my flowers but I didn't want to embarrass her. It was during these musings when I saw three red carnations being placed on her desk. She looked up and smiled but just continued to sit there; she didn't even reach out and touch them! I wasn't the only one that had noticed either; people were starting to whisper and point in her direction.
I could tell the other girls were a bit jealous because not a single girl in the class had received more than one red carnation at this point. Then things really started to get wild. Each time a student council member came in, at least one of the carnations in their stack was for her and they were all red!
At this point as best as I could tell, she had 7 red carnations stacked neatly on her desk. The class started getting a little rowdy and each time a red carnation was placed on her desk, we all cheered. OK, the boys cheered, the girls mostly just glared.
I knew I was witnessing something great and I tried to seek out the "gossip girls" just to see their reactions to this unexpected twist of events. There were three of them in our class and two of them had a few pink and white carnations on their desk and the third had a handful of white ones. I was thrilled by what was happening but I had to also wonder who had sent her all of the carnations....did she have a secret admirer?
My thoughts were interrupted by the crackle of the intercom and the voice of our principal wishing us a Happy Valentine's Day. He went on to explain that all of the carnations had been distributed and then in his long-winded manner, thanked the Student Council for a job well done.
I heard a commotion behind me as one of the "gossip girls" got up out of her chair and ran out of the room. I heard later that one of the boys teased her about not getting any red carnations which made her start to cry. I didn't even feel bad for her as my attention was focused on the pile of red carnations sitting on the desk next to me. What I noticed next was the smile on the girl's face. It truly was a great day!
I don't know for sure but I heard she was given 24 red carnations that day. We don't know who gave them to her but I am glad someone did. I will never forget her nor will I forget that day. Oh, I did fairly well too. I received a handful of white carnations and I got a special pink one. Yes, it was from a guy, not the guy I was secretly hoping to get one from but from a great friend of mine that was hoping to make my day special. And you know what? It was special!
About The Author
If you have been inspired by my story and would like to send flowers to a loved one this Valentine’s day, please visit me at http://www.flowers-and-garden.com/valentines-day-flowers.html
Happy Valentine’s Day!
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