GUNS N ROSES

Valentines Day dawns and where are the red roses ?

When the Little Girls were at home, Valentine s Day was a joyous occasion - Pappa Bear AKA HeeHoo would always arrange for three bouquets of red roses to be delivered to the house ! A big bouquet for Mamma Bear, a medium size bouquet for Josie Bear and a Little Bouquet for Baby Bear !! But since the girlies left home, there are no roses arriving at the door......

There were cards too, written in clandestine handwriting "from a Secret Admirer !!" And there were chocolate hearts scattered around in hidden places.....

The arrival home from school on Valentine s Day was a momentous occasion, blushing, giggling, girlies carrying red roses wrapped in cellophane, sometimes one, sometimes two !! They had no idea that most of these were really often from Mom and Dad !!

I did not envy the teachers on Valentine s Day - how does one even keep a modicum of decorum and "book larning" when the florist vans, loaded to the brim, arrived non stop at the school gate ? Such girlish joy, such excitement, such innocence, how I miss those halcyon days.

Valentines Day is not quite so beguiling nowadays sadly, getting roses to all parts of the world for our daughters is a task in itself but it is a tradition that must take place come hell or high water.

This Valentine s Day was more than usually daunting as Baby Bear spent that week in Mogadishu !
As I laboriously checked on the internet for florists in Mogadishu this is what I found...
"WARNING: Mogadishu is regarded as the most lawless and dangerous city on Earth and is currently experiencing a major food and refugee crisis. It is highly dangerous for leisure or tourism. If you are planning a visit for international aid work, etc, you will need expert advice and planning.
When being escorted by armed security, it is best to be in an armored car. Infantry are highly likely to get engaged in street battles, and an armored vehicle can provide far better protection against most threats. A bullet proof vest is a must-have in Mogadishu."
Hmmmmmmm does a mother really need to read that sort of thing ?
And florists ? Heck no, there were grenade shops, AK 47 Shops, but nary a florist to be found !! I did a detailed study of Interflora deliveries and found that one can send flowers to every city in the world but not to Mogadishu !!
What would the address be I wondered hopelessly ? Ruined building number 432, Main Road ? Al Shabbab, Mogadishu ?
How could that child distress her poor mother so? When she was in Afghanistan I could have solved the problem and sent her some red poppies from the opium fields I suppose ?
But red roses in Mogadishu ?
Poor HeeHooMustFish suggested a bouquet of grenades and rifles wrapped in a flack jacket!! And so we decided mutually instead that we will send her the song entitled "Sweet Child of Mine" sung by the band Guns N Roses.......