The Mother's Day rush

Lupe Zepeda of Central Coast Flowers was out early Sunday morning selling colorful arrangements at the corner of Enos Drive and Broadway. The scent of Asiatic lilies, roses and baby's breath filled the still air as a steady stream of Mother's Day customers chose something special for the object of their affections.

“Mother's Day is busy, but not quite as busy as Valentine's Day,” Zepeda said. “Usually people wait until the last minute to buy flowers on Mother's Day. It's not quite the same thing with Valentine's Day. Still, we get hit pretty hard. Some people wait till the day of because they don't want the flowers to go bad. They're afraid the flowers will die. They don't know that flowers will keep for a couple of days. That's why we're out here - for all of the last minute buyers who want something fresh.”

Depending on the size of the arrangement and the types of flowers, Zepeda's assorted baskets and bouquets were priced from $10 to $45.

“Typically we'll sell everything by this afternoon,” she said. “We always get a lot of customers in the afternoon.”

Alejandra Valadez stopped by the flower stand to express her gratitude for her mother Catalina's faithfulness throughout her life.

“She's the best,” said Valadez. “My mom was really strict when I was little. I know I had a hard time behaving at that time. My dad was out a lot, because he was a musician. My mom was always there for us. Always. All the time. And I know we made it kind of impossible for her, but she never really gave up on us. It's really wonderful how great moms could be. They give you all their love, even though they're dying inside, she never tells you her problems, everything was always OK with her. She's just a wonderful person.”

Cesar Rodriguez of Santa Maria echoed the sentiments of many a son Sunday morning. He was buying flowers for his mother, Malagra, who is very special to him.

“My mom is very special,” he said. “You only have one in this world. She's very special and dear to me. Moms always keep you in line when you're a little kid. I think that's one of the things that I'm most grateful for, that she's always been there for me, keeping me on the straight and narrow path, focussed and what not.

“When I was younger I was a bit of a knucklehead,” Rodriguez said. “She pretty much loved her son and stuck by me. That meant a lot to me. She kept me focused on doing what I had to do. Gladly enough, I ended up graduating from high school on time and went on to college.”

Another Santa Maria resident, Chris Sprouse, described his mother Mary as a continual source of love and guidance.

“Throughout my whole life, she's been there for me,” Sprouse said. “My father wasn't really around. She's had a great impact on me throughout my entire life.

“She taught me my work ethic. She taught me everything. I'm real grateful to her for that. I know I can always to go back to mom whenever I need advice. I have a daughter and whenever I need advice for raising her, I go right to my mom. She's always there for me.

“I never really realized when I was younger how much she means to me,” he said. “Now that I'm older, I'm beginning to understand.”

Todd Cralley can be reached at 347-4580 or tcralley@santamariatimes.com.

May 14, 2007