After 21 years of marriage， I discovered a new way of keeping alive the spark[火花] of love.

A little while ago I had started to go out with another woman. It was really my wifes idea.

“I know that you love her，” she said one day， taking me by surprise.

The other woman that my wife wanted me to visit was my mother. She had been a widow[寡婦] for 19 years， but the demands of my work and my three children had made it possible to visit her only occasionally[偶爾].

That night I called to invite her to go out for dinner and a movie.

“Whats wrong， are you well？” she asked. My mother is the type of woman who suspects[懷疑] that a late night call or a surprise invitation is a sign of bad news.

“I thought that it would be pleasant to pass some time with you，” I responded， “just the two of us.”

She thought about it for a moment then said， “I would like that very much.”

That Friday after work as I drove over to pick her up I was a bit nervous. When I arrived at her house， I noticed that she， too， seemed to be nervous about our date. She waited in the door with her coat on. She had curled[使卷曲] her hair and was wearing the dress that she had worn to celebrate her last wedding anniversary[周年紀(jì)念日]. She smiled from a face that was as radiant[容光煥發(fā)的] as an angels.

“I told my friends that I was going to go out with my son， and they were impressed[受感動的]，” she said， as she got into the car. “They cant wait to hear about our meeting.”

We went to a restaurant that， although not elegant[優(yōu)雅的，一流的]， was very nice and cozy[溫馨的]. My mother took my arm as if she were the First Lady. After we sat down， I had to read the menu. Her eyes could only read large print. Half way through the entrée[主菜]， I lifted my eyes and saw Mom sitting there staring at me. A nostalgic[懷舊的] smile was on her lips.

“It was I who used to have to read the menu when you were small，” she said.

“Then its time that you relax and let me return the favor[恩惠]，” I responded.

During the dinner we had an agreeable[令人愉快的] conversation， nothing extraordinary[非凡的]， but catching up on recent events of each others lives. We talked so much that we missed the movie.

As we arrived at her house later she said， “Ill go out with you again， but only if you let me invite you.” I agreed.

“How was your dinner date？” my wife asked when I got home.

“Very nice. Much more so than I could have imagined，” I answered.

A few days later my mother died of a massive heart attack[心肌梗塞]. It happened so suddenly that I didnt have a chance to do anything for her.

Some time later I received an envelope with a copy of a restaurant receipt[收據(jù)] from the same place mother and I had dined.

An attached[附加的] note said： “I paid this bill in advance[提前]. I was almost sure that I couldnt be there， but nevertheless I paid for two plates[餐位]—one for you and the other for your wife. You will never know what that night meant for me. I love you.”

At that moment I understood the importance of saying “I LOVE YOU” in time and giving our loved ones the time that they deserve[應(yīng)得]…

Yesterday is a canceled check.

Tomorrow is a promissory note[本票，期票].

Today is cash… Spend it wisely.

結(jié)婚21年后，我發(fā)現(xiàn)了一種保持愛火永不熄滅的新方法。

不久前，我開始與另一個女人出去約會。其實(shí)這還是我妻子的主意。

有一天她對我說：“我知道你愛她，”嚇了我一跳。

妻子鼓勵我去約會的“另一個女人”就是我的母親。她已守寡19年，但由于我的工作需要，還有三個孩子需要我照顧，使得我只能偶爾去看望她一下。

那天晚上，我打電話約她出來吃飯、看電影。

“怎么了？你還好吧？”她問。我的母親就是這樣的女人，她覺得，任何一個深夜來電或意外邀約都是壞消息的征兆。

“我想與您共度一段美好時光，”我解釋道，“就咱倆?！?/p>

她想了想，說：“好?。∥液軜芬?。”

周五下班后，我開車去接她，路上我感到有些緊張。到達(dá)母親住所時，我注意到，她似乎也對我們的約會感到緊張。她已經(jīng)穿好外套等在門口了。她燙了頭發(fā)，還穿上了最后一次慶祝結(jié)婚紀(jì)念日時的禮服。她笑容滿面，容光煥發(fā)，宛若天使。

“我對朋友們說，我要和兒子出去約會，他們都很感動，”她一邊說著，一邊上了我的車?！八麄兤炔患按叵肓私馕覀兗s會的情況?！?/p>

我們?nèi)チ艘患译m不是一流卻很溫馨舒適的飯店。母親挽著我的手臂，儼然第一夫人。入座后，我不得不為她讀出菜單上的名目。因?yàn)槟赣H視力不好，只能看清大號印刷字。主菜點(diǎn)到一半時，我抬眼瞥見母親正目不轉(zhuǎn)睛地盯著我，嘴角掛著一抹懷念的笑容。

“在你還小的時候，都是我為你念菜單的，”她說。

“那么現(xiàn)在就是您休息的時候了，讓我為您效勞，”我回答道。

用餐期間，我們相談甚歡，也沒說什么了不得的事，只是聊些平時沒空交流的生活近況。我們興致甚高，滔滔不絕，以致于錯過了電影。

后來，當(dāng)我送她到家時，她說：“我會再和你出去的，但必須是我請你?！蔽彝饬?。

“晚餐約會進(jìn)行得怎么樣啊？”一到家，妻子就問我。

“非常棒，大大超乎我的想象，”我答道。

幾天后，母親由于心肌梗塞過世了。由于太過突然，我都沒來得及為她做任何事。

過了一段時間，我收到一封信，信封里有一張餐館收據(jù)的復(fù)印件，是上次我和母親用餐的那家餐館寄來的。

里面附有一張紙條，上面寫著：“我已預(yù)先付好賬，我?guī)缀蹩梢源_定，我不能赴約了。不過，我還是付了兩個餐位的費(fèi)用——為你和你的妻子。你永遠(yuǎn)不會知道那晚對我有多重要。我愛你！”

在那一刻，我終于明白及時說出“我愛你”以及花時間與那些我們深愛的人相處有多么重要，這是他們應(yīng)得的……

昨天是支票，已經(jīng)付訖。

明天是本票，尚未到期。

今天是現(xiàn)金……用心去花。