When we are born, we are blessed with “the art of gift giving.” Do you remember when you were a child picking wild flowers and taking the beautiful bouquets to mom? We knew that she would bring a beautiful smile to Mother’s face and she made us feel so good. She could have scolded us moments before for some minor misdeed, but all was forgiven when she presented us with our beautiful gift of flowers. Of course, her smile wasn’t as big when we picked out her prize-winning Roses as it was when we gave her a handful of dandelions, lilies of the valley, or trilliums, but it was a smile all the same. We knew our simple gift to her made her so happy. We were not taught this timeless art of giving…it is a gift we are born with…it is part of who we are. We show that we care… appreciate… love… with this simple act of giving flowers.

Starting with this act of gift giving that began as a child, we continue the tradition as we grow. Remember the wildflowers from the boy or girl next door when we were eight? Then it was our face that lit up with a big smile. Next came our first prom…our first corsage…roses from our first love…the tradition continued from our teens to adulthood.

We always remember our Mother with a visit or a phone call and flowers every Birthday and Mother’s Day. When our best friend feels sad, our first response is to send him a rose. When our neighbor’s father dies, we immediately send flowers. Giving a gift of flowers, a simple act that began with that first handful of flowers, has become a time-honored tradition… saying I love you… saying thank you… saying I’m thinking of you. ..to say Get Well Soon…to say We Care.

Today’s florists allow us to continue this childhood tradition of gift-giving. They have expanded our options not only to flowers, but also to chocolates, gourmet gift baskets, hand-dipped strawberries, cheese, wine, fresh fruit, and many more unique gifts. Online flower shops make it easy for us to show the special people in our lives that we care… appreciate… love.