Dear elderly Valentine ...

Early this morning I realized it is Valentine's Day and I probably should scoot off to a discount store for a card and bouquet. That's when I remembered seeing a week or so ago some kind of old card in a drawer where I was rummaging for scratch paper.

At that moment I didn't stop to identify the card. All I remember was it was big and had red on it. Could this be a spare card I might have bought in some previous year that could be made to fit today's declaration of eternal love?

When I looked, it was - to my great joy - a really pretty Valentine card. But my joy turned to dismay when I opened it to find that I'd already given it to my wife and I had, moreover, written some mushy stuff on it. I don't remember how or why it got in the scratch paper drawer.

Dare I take a chance and try to give her the same card twice?

Age 74 has not been kind to my memory nor to hers. I blame my bad memory on it being overstuffed with important things. I don't know what causes hers.

I figured it was worth a try; I had much to gain and little to lose. I put it on the kitchen table before she came downstairs.

She loved it and didn't notice it didn't even have an envelope.

Bad memory usually isn't among the innumerable advantages of the golden years, but it saved me a few bucks today.

Or maybe she did remember the card and will retaliate later. If so, I may pay dearly.