Just a Rose

Poem written by my daughter, Grace.

Just a Rose

By: Grace Barnett

Sixteen - year old Jenny had a worried look on her face as she walked through the park. She loved the park this time of year; the flowers and the buds on the trees were just beginning to bloom. Nature seemed to get her mind off everything. It relaxed her. When she walked through the park, all her troubles, all her worries, were just a distant memory. It was as if she was being carried by a soft pink fluffy cloud, over the Earth, over every care, every worry. A screeching tire to her left made her snap back into reality. She was almost home. Her family wasn’t the wealthiest, but they had a home, food, clothing; and most importantly each other. Then she remembered why she had detoured through the park in the first place. Tomorrow was her mother’s birthday. She would be 39. She wasn’t sure what to get, but she knew it would be really special. Jenny hated to think about it; but it may be her mother’s last. She tried to put the thought out of her mind, but she knew it might be true. Her mother had had congenital heart problems for her whole life. When she was born, the doctors hadn’t the slightest clue what they were dealing with. In fact, they were surprised that she made it passed the age of two. But here she was. A tear slid down Jenny’s cheek as she walked through the front door of their apartment house. She put on a smile as she went into the living room where her mother was watching television. They had been to the doctor’s office a few days earlier. The doctor just said to take her home and enjoy what time she had left. As she sat down beside her mother, their eyes met. There was sadness and gladness all mixed around in the inner pits of their minds. They both knew what the other one was thinking. They always had. She looked past her mother to an inscribing on the top part of the wall. “Best Buds”, she spoke aloud. That was so very true. “Mom”, Jenny said, “I want to get you something really special for your birthday, but I just don’t know what.” “Jenny, her mother whispered because it was hard to talk, “Don’t spend a lot of money on the gift, just get me a bright red rose, and I’ll be happy.” Jenny wanted to get her something more spectacular, but she wanted to make her mother happy. “Look at me Jenny”, Jenny turned and gazed into her mother’s eyes. “I know you want to get something special for my birthday, but that simple rose will mean the world to me, because I know that you love me.” That brought a tear to both of their eyes. The next day Jenny and her mother spent the day playing games and talking about this and that. That evening, she went to the local flower shop, to get the prettiest and biggest rose that she could find, but the one she wanted was too much money. She found another rose. It wasn’t as big and pretty as the other one was, but Jenny knew her mother would love it. She took it home and put it in some water. She sat it in her bedroom, intending to surprise her with it bright and early in the morning. About 11 o’ clock that night, Jenny’s father woke her up. He had a sad and worried look on his face. “Jenny”, he said, “Come in here with me, we need to talk.” Jenny knew what those words meant, but she didn’t want to think that was possible. She shook it off. Her mother was weakening, but … no, it couldn’t be true. Before leaving her room, though, Jenny grabbed her mother’s red rose. As she walked over to her mother’s side, their eyes met as they did 2 days earlier. Before anything was said, Jenny handed her mother the rose. “Happy Birthday Mom”, Jenny said. “I wanted to get you the bigger, redder one, but I didn’t have enough money for it. “It’s perfect”, her mother said. “Jenny”, she said, “I love you very much.” That was the last word she spoke. The rose fell on the floor, and Jenny quickly picked it up. She placed the rose in her mother’s hands. “I love you too Mom”.

Grace Barnett - Author

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