A Gift

by Lauraine Alberetti Lombara

You know you were a gift to me from Sara.  I need to keep you alive - at least for a short time because I would hate to see Sara come by and find you dead.  Do you also know that I do not have a great record when it comes to tending houseplants, or any plants for that matter? 

My only recourse towards having anything green growing in the house, which survives, is cacti, bamboo stalks in water and the Christmas flowering plants...see, I can't even remember their name and no, it is not a poinsettia. Strangely, these tropical imports seem to last a long time yet do not look as spectacular as when fresh. Come Spring, the Christmas bloom is gone and the poor thing looks sick, tired and happy to be tossed.

It would be a great gift to Sara to see you growing healthy and beautiful so please, make every effort to drink that water, bask in the sunlight and eat from the food stick.  I followed the directions for care and stuck it in you....hope it didn't hurt. I would be most grateful for your gift to me.