My mother-in-law, Denise, had other ideas for my 29th birthday party than what I had planned. When my husband Evan went on a business trip, Denise took advantage of the time to send me a bunch of wilted flowers along with a mean note. She didn’t expect the love and strength that would come from being mean, though.
As soon as I opened the door and saw the delivery van, I felt happy because I thought Denise had finally reached a new level. But the dried flowers and poisonous smell that went with them told a different story.
“This is what will happen to your relationship with Evan,” the note said. It will dry out and die. “You’re not good enough for him.” Denise didn’t know that her hate would be met with love and strength, but I felt the world fall apart around me.
Evan shocked me by getting home early, and we came up with a plan to show Denise what love and relationships are really about. We turned our flat into a flower garden to show how happy we are together.
When Denise got there, she saw something that made her speechless. The flowers, candles, and warm home full of love were very different from the hate she had tried to spread.
The words Evan spoke hit me hard: “Our marriage is growing stronger; it won’t die like the flowers you sent.” Thanks to your anger and hatred, Mom, you are the one dying.
At that point, Denise realised it was too late to change what she had done. Her daughter pushed her son away, and he loved and looked out for me instead.
Denise’s mood changed over the course of the days. She stopped being rude and sarcastic, and even though she never said sorry, she started to understand what she was doing was wrong.
My birthday used to stand for hate, but now it shows how strong love and determination can be. Evan and I turned a mean thing that happened into a chance to get better. This showed Denise that love always wins over hate.
