A Daisy A Day

In the only movie my lovely bride cares about seeing more than one time, "You've Got Mail", there is a conversation going on via e-mail between Kathleen Kelly, who owns a quaint Manhattan bookshop that caters to children, and the heir to the behemoth that is Fox Books, Joe Fox. At one point in one of their exchanges, she remarks that, "Daisies are the friendliest flower."

Well, my wife certainly agrees with that and I think I do, too. I mean, who wouldn't? Is there a more friendly flower than the Daisy? I don't think so. Roses, for example, aren't friendly. They have a reputation for being all about "love", but to me they look a bit more like, "We look good! Don't we? Don't we look good? Yeah, we look good." Roses are stuck on themselves.

Carnations? Carnations are the Prom flower and they are phonies. They look nice and come in all sorts of funky colors so they can match whatever the get up is that the girl finally settles on. But that matchy-matchy silliness is just there to distract you from thinking about the TWO-FOOT LONG HARPOON THAT IS HIDING JUST BEHIND THE FLOWER! This is just one more source of anxiety for the guy who is already chock-full of doubt. He'll be okay about the carnation though, because mom can pin the flower on his date, but he's really starting to second-guess the decision to grab burgers from the bowling alley for dinner.

Orchids, you say? Orchids are Royalty. They are all, "You may kiss the ring," and "We are not amused," and stuff like that. Orchids will not be seen in public with other flowers. Heck, they probably will not be seen in public with me. In fact you can't buy Orchids at any stores. You have to petition for an audience with an Orchid. You may catch a glimpse of one as a motorcade goes by, or hear rumors of an Orchid staying at a villa in the Caribbean, but don't ask about the Rose they were seen frolicking with on the beach.

The point of this silly exercise is to reinforce the idea that Daisies really are the friendliest flower and are near and dear to Kathy's heart. And I have a soft spot for things that she considers near and dear. So on Valentine's Day, I would give you bunches of Daisies, but I don't have any. (At least, not yet.) So, I will give you this, which I never fail to think about when you speak of your love of Daisies.