It has been some time since I last gave anyone roses. It must have been years ago when I gave Jean a bouquet at the end of her dance performance. But as out of touch as I am, the roses I saw today seemed to have petals that lack the texture and the vibrancy of colours, that were the characteristics of roses years ago. The petals were paper thin and did not have the thickness or the fullness that were the marks of elegance. Perhaps these were from India and Malaysia, not from Holland which produces slightly larger ones.

The art of buying roses might be a dying one, but romance was in the air and love was in bloom. And in such ambience, roses will be beautiful. But await the appearance of someone creative and resourceful enough to present a black tulip during Valentine's.