A Letter to My Neighbor Who Plants Tulips

To the tulip lady next door, Mrs. Hendricks:

Every fall, I watch you on your knees in your front yard, planting hundreds of tulip bulbs. You're eighty-three. You do it alone, with a small trowel and a bucket, over several days.

And every spring, your yard explodes. Red, yellow, pink, purple, white. People walk down our street just to see it. Kids stop on their way to school. A woman I've never met told me she takes the long way to work every April just to drive past your house.

I don't think you know how many people you make happy. You've never said a word about it. You just plant your bulbs and wave at us from your porch when they bloom.

This fall, I'm going to help you plant. If you'll let me. Thank you for your tulips. They are the best part of spring.