Anatomy of a Valentine's Day Box

I should be so blessed to have parents who both remember & decide to send a Valentines Day box (so timed, with a bit of luck to arrive on the very date!) & with such love contained inside as can only be shown by parents at their best.

With a well documented Jelly Belly’s preference dominated by the color green, an exquisite mix remaining true to the seasons Red & White colors devoid of any of those particularly strong or awful flavors that can so easily dominate & take away from the joy of the simple plunge & eat method of consumption.

A conscious or unconscious nod to the candy dish traditions of our household throughout my formative years with the addition of a bag of red hots and the candy hearts with words. It simply wouldn’t be valentines day without them.

Remembrance of strange habits forgotten by the precipitator of them via lack of the medium. I’m still mystified by both how my mother remembered, and then managed to find the Australian Chewing Sticks I so loved to gnaw on during my ASP days. I had to mail order them via internet after discovering them from one of my volunteers. Where she managed to rustle some up I have no idea.

The realization of a unique challenge of living in a culture that does not normally use toilet paper via the inclusion of “Charmin to Go.”

The element of surprise, even overcoming the customs designation on the outside of the box. Usually I manage to remove without looking, but the damage bottom of the box necessitated a comparison of two forms revealing the inclusion of such an unseen or used item, whether a college dorm or native house, as a pack of napkins. Yet, contrary to the typical conclusion of pink & red heart covered ridiculousness, one is greeted by the Chinese Year of the Dog with a note reminding you of the also so hailed year of your birth.

Chocolate. Even better, Dark Chocolate. Self explanatory :o) But on top of that Chocolate in Tupperware containers! Both keeping the prized items safe from the ants & then doubling as my lunch containers to work in the future.

A book & notebook. Not just any book, but Night by Elie Wiesle, “My next serious read.” So that I might be able to continue reading along with Mom (and Dad?) the books they’re reading.

Thanks Mom and Dad! A well timed box of love combined with the literal outpouring of love and support from all of you has meant so much to me. Its wonderful to be reminded that “…yes, it's a little harder to bounce ideas back and forth when you're living in a valley above a videoke bar in the philippines and most people you might know &care about (maybe i shouldn't make that assumption...but i think it's at least partially true) are in the states, but not impossible…”.