On a cool morning in Bogota Columbia

A beautiful red rose stands proud in a large field

Bathed in sunlight

Nurtured by experienced growers

Its time to harvest

The rose stem is cut

It joins a bunch of roses

Packaged in a large box

Shipped by truck to the airport

Flown to the US

Trucked to a flower store

Arranged in a chilled display cabinet

Purchased by a loyal customer

Driven from the store to his home

Presented to his wife

Lovingly placed in a vase

Celebrating their fiftieth wedding anniversary

He always bought her red roses

He gave her a card

Inside she found a note

These roses have travelled far to be with you

Now is the time

For us to visit their home

There were also two plane tickets

A few days later they flew to Columbia

A driver took them to Bogota

She smiled when she saw the fields

A sea of red roses she beamed

The farm manager gave them a tour

She stopped to smell the roses

He cut a bright red rose for her

For the journey home he said

She held the rose in her hand

All the way to the airport

She carried it on the plane heading to the US

They were stopped at the border and customs control

The officer spoke apologetically but firmly

So sorry Mam you cannot bring flowers into the country

The confiscated rose was tossed into the trash

An unceremonious end to its short life

His wife shed a tear

Never mind said her husband

I will buy you another rose

Lets drive straight to the flower store

She smiled and squeezed his hand

On a cool morning in Bogota Columbia

A beautiful red rose stands proud in a large field