Months after her husband Albert died, Vivienne started receiving her favorite flowers every week. None of her children or grandchildren had sent them, so they set up a surveillance camera to find out who did. But the truth changed their entire family.
Albert and Vivienne Harrison lived in Indianapolis, Indiana for most of their 55-year marriage. Albert died from natural causes at 86 years old, and she was heartbroken. But luckily, she had a big family to keep her company.
The couple had three children, six grandchildren, and their first great-grandchild was born a few months before Albert died. Vivienne knew they had lived a long, peaceful life filled with love, so her heart was at ease despite how much she missed Albert.
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But a few months after his death, she returned home from Sunday mass to see a bouquet of her favorite flowers on her doorstep. “Oh, aren’t these the most exquisite roses!” Vivienne said to herself after picking them up.
She called her daughter, Miriam, who told her she didn’t send them. Vivienne rang both her sons too, but neither Andrew nor Blake sent them either. They all promised to ask their children to see if any of them had.
But after a few phone calls, no one in the family could figure out who did it. “I’m sorry, Mom. None of my kids did. But Gina said that she once saw a movie where an old man instructed a flower shop to send flowers to his wife after his death,” Miriam said.
“Do you think your father did that?” Vivienne wondered.
“I don’t know, but I remember that Dad always got you flowers from the same shop. It couldn’t hurt to ask them,” Miriam suggested. So Vivienne called their go-to flower shop, but they didn’t have such an order from Albert.
She called Miriam again, but her daughter Gina had no other ideas. “Well, Mom. Maybe some kind stranger sent a random bouquet. Just enjoy them.”
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Vivienne put the matter off her mind for the rest of the week and continued with her life. However, another bouquet was waiting at her doorstep when she returned from mass the following Sunday.
“It’s weird, Miriam. What if it’s a creep or one of those stalkers I’ve read about?” she hesitated.
“Stop watching crime documentaries, Mom. It’s none of that. Just enjoy the flowers,” Miriam said, exasperated. She didn’t think her mother should be worried about flowers. But the bouquets kept coming every Sunday, and Vivienne needed to know what was happening.
“Ok, Grandma. I bought you this camera for your front door. It records who comes to your doorstep and such,” explained Hanna, Miriam’s other daughter, when she came over to visit her grandmother. She installed the camera herself, and they waited to see what happened.
That Sunday, they saw a strange man with a bouquet. He left them on her porch and then fled. “That’s weird, Grandma. It’s a young man,” Hanna said when she browsed through the footage.
For illustration purposes only | Source: Pexels
“See? It’s weird. I told your mother this whole thing was odd, but she doesn’t think it’s a big deal,” Vivienne replied.
“I think he might just be a delivery man. I don’t think he’s the one sending the flowers, although he’s not wearing a uniform,” Hanna observed. “Let’s wait to see if he comes around again.”
He did. The man came over every Sunday at the same time to deliver the flowers. Finally, Vivienne had enough and decided not to attend church to catch him. This time, Hanna and Andrew’s son, Jake, stayed with her just in case.
They were watching the live footage of the camera when the man showed up. Jake rushed to the door, opened it, and the man bolted. But Jake ran to catch him while Hanna stayed behind with Vivienne.
Jake caught him before the man could escape and brought him back to his grandmother’s house. “Who are you, young man? Why have you been delivering flowers here every week?” Vivienne asked sternly.
“Mrs. Harrison, this is hard to explain. My name is Michael, and your husband was my grandfather,” the man began.
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“What? Are you crazy, man? We know all our cousins. There’s no way,” Jake warned angrily.
“I know it’s hard to take. From what I know, Grandpa Albert had an affair right before getting married. My grandmother didn’t know she was pregnant until months later. Then she raised my mother alone. But I reached out to Grandpa a few years ago,” Michael stated.
“We formed a nice bond. He told me about your family and wanted to introduce me to you guys. But the timing was never right. The last time I spoke to him, he said that if he passed, he hoped I would buy you flowers, as his apology for not telling you the truth sooner.”
“I can’t believe this,” Hanna whispered. Jake shook his head. But Vivienne knew that the boy was telling the truth. He looked just like Albert did when they got married.
“You are the spitting image of my late husband. Do you think I could meet your grandmother?” Vivienne asked. She had a few questions for the woman.
“I’m sorry. My Grandma and Mom died in a car accident when I was 20. That’s why I reached out to Grandpa. I didn’t have any family left,” Michael revealed.
For illustration purposes only | Source: Pexels
“Oh, my dear. I’m sorry. In that case, I’m glad that you got to meet Albert. He was a family man through and through. This might be a shock to the rest of the family, but they will want to meet you,” Vivienne assured.
The entire family was shocked to learn about Grandpa Albert’s affair, but they welcomed Michael at Vivienne’s insistence. They had a BBQ party where everyone got to meet him. Michael also introduced them to his wife and their toddler.
“Mom, how can you be so calm about this?” Miriam asked her mother at the gathering.
“Oh, honey. Life is so short. If I had discovered this incident years ago, maybe I would’ve been mad. But now, I’m just glad to have more people to love. Also, he followed your father’s wishes to make me happy. That tells you the kind of man he is,” Vivienne shared.
In the end, Michael formed a beautiful bond with most of his cousins, who were all around his age. It took a little longer for his aunt and uncles to accept him, but they did in the end.
But most surprisingly, Michael had a soft spot for Vivienne. He continued to bring her flowers every Sunday, and the older woman invited him for tea every time.
What can we learn from this story?
- It’s easier to see the big picture when you’re older. Her kids and grandkids couldn’t understand at first, but Vivienne knew they would all be happier after accepting Michael.
- Don’t keep secrets. Albert should’ve told his wife about Michael as soon as he found out. But he died before he could say anything.
Share this story with your friends. It might brighten their day and inspire them.
If you enjoyed this story, you might like this one about a woman who heard a stranger say, “Everything is going according to plan,” at her husband’s funeral.
This account is inspired by our reader’s story and written by a professional writer. Any resemblance to actual names or locations is purely coincidental. All images are for illustration purposes only. Share your story with us; maybe it will change someone’s life.
Courteney Cox Reveals Heartfelt Pain Over Not Getting an Emmy Nomination for Friends!
Courteney Cox became a global superstar overnight when she landed the role of Monica Geller on *Friends*. Her life changed completely—she became very famous and very wealthy.
Before *Friends*, Courteney’s career was already taking off. She was featured in a famous music video years earlier.
So, how did Courteney feel about playing Monica? And what is she up to these days? Here’s everything you need to know about her.
Courteney Cox Reveals Heartfelt Pain Over Not Getting an Emmy Nomination for Friends!
Courteney Cox became a global superstar overnight when she landed the role of Monica Geller on *Friends*. Her life changed completely—she became very famous and very wealthy.
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Before *Friends*, Courteney’s career was already taking off. She was featured in a famous music video years earlier.
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So, how did Courteney feel about playing Monica? And what is she up to these days? Here’s everything you need to know about her.
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Getting a big break in acting must be thrilling, knowing you’re on your way to something great. For some actors, this happens when they’re young, while others work hard for years before getting their chance in their 30s or 40s.
Once that big break comes, things usually start to take off. For Courteney Cox, that was definitely the case.
The Alabama native first appeared in Bruce Springsteen’s music video for “Dancing in the Dark,” which kicked off her Hollywood career. Soon after, she landed the role of Monica Geller on the hit show *Friends*, and her life changed forever.
These days, Courteney Cox is busy with various projects, has built a wonderful family, and welcomed her children.
She has also been open about plastic surgery and facelifts, and has recently changed her views on the topic.
Here’s everything you need to know about Courteney “Monica Geller” Cox!
Courteney Cox was born on June 15, 1964, in Birmingham, Alabama, as the youngest of four children to Courteney and Richard Lewis Cox. When she was young, she was teased at school because of her last name.
She said, “I hated my last name, but when my dad passed away, I decided to embrace it and keep it going since there was no one else in the family to do so.”
When Courteney was 10, her parents divorced. She lived with her mother and later her stepfather, and the divorce had a lasting impact on her. She mentioned that one of her earliest memories is of her parents’ divorce. She said, “My mum wasn’t a go-getter, so I’m grateful I could see that and become the opposite.”
Courteney didn’t always dream of acting. She initially wanted to be an architect and studied architecture at Mount Vernon College. However, she dropped out and moved to New York City, where she started modeling and worked at a music agency.
Her modeling career was short-lived, but she soon transitioned into acting. In 1985, at age 21, Courteney got her big break, not in a film but in a music video. Director Brian De Palma cast her in Bruce Springsteen’s video for the hit song “Dancing in the Dark.” The video was filmed during a Springsteen concert, and Courteney played an enthusiastic fan in the front row.
At the end of Bruce Springsteen’s “Dancing in the Dark” music video, Springsteen brought Courteney Cox up on stage. They danced together to a saxophone solo by Clarence Clemons.
Looking back, Courteney wasn’t thrilled with her dancing in the video. She said, “That wasn’t good dancing on my part. I’d only recreate it as a joke.”
The video was a big hit on MTV, and even though Courteney was only in it for about 20 seconds, it helped her career take off. That same year, she appeared in the film *Misfits of Science*, and two years later, she landed her first major role.
She starred in the popular sitcom *Family Ties* and had smaller roles in films like *Ace Ventura: Pet Detective* with Jim Carrey.
But in 1995, something unexpected happened. Marta Kauffman and David Crane created a new show about six friends living in New York. Courteney Cox was cast as Monica Geller, and it changed her career forever.
In 1993, Kauffman and Crane started working on a new show. It premiered on September 22, and right from the start, it was clear it was going to be a hit.
Today, *Friends* is one of the most famous sitcoms ever, running for 10 seasons and 236 episodes. The final episode was watched by over 50 million people in the U.S. Courteney Cox, along with Jennifer Aniston, Lisa Kudrow, Matt LeBlanc, Matthew Perry, and David Schwimmer, became a global star.
Marta Kauffman said in 1995, “She’s adorable and smart and really together. She is Monica.”
Courteney Cox said, “I love Monica because she’s a grown-up, and I can bring more of my personality to her. She’s goofy, angry, sarcastic, and a bit naughty. People might see her as the goody-goody, but I think she has more sex appeal than the others.”
Courteney found a lot of herself in Monica. In real life, she’s also what she calls a “neat freak,” just like her character on *Friends*.
Courteney Cox shared that she doesn’t use a lint brush or iron her clothes, but she’s great at picking lint off others. She once noticed she was acting just like Monica while helping John Stewart on his show and thought, “I’m just like Monica. This is kind of scary.”
*Friends* became a huge hit worldwide, and the cast earned a lot of money. In the final seasons, they each made $1 million per episode. Even now, 17 years after the show ended, they make about $20 million a year from reruns because they get a share of the show’s syndication revenue. Netflix paid up to $100 million to keep *Friends* on their platform through 2019.
Today, Courteney Cox has a net worth of about $150 million.
Despite the success and money, Courteney was hurt that she never got an Emmy nomination while all her co-stars did. “It always hurt my feelings,” she told Howard Stern. “When every single cast member was nominated but me, it definitely hurt. I was happy for everyone, but it was tough being the only one left out.”
Courteney Cox said she always wanted her fellow cast members to win awards, but she also wanted to be included sometimes. She never wanted to take anything away from anyone else, just to be part of it.
Even though she didn’t get an Emmy for *Friends*, she did receive awards for her work on other projects. After *Friends*, Courteney starred in the sitcom *Cougar Town* as Jules Cobb, and she was recognized for her role there. In 2010, she got a Golden Globe nomination for Best Actress in a Comedy or Musical Series.
In 2021, she and the *Friends* cast were nominated for an award for their reunion special. Courteney Cox is still active in TV and is currently working on a new show called *Shining Vale*, which is in post-production.
Over the years, Courteney Cox became a global star, as well as a wife and mother. She married actor David Arquette in 1999, and they had a daughter, Coco, in 2004. They divorced in 2013.
Since then, Courteney has been in a relationship with musician Johnny McDaid from the band Snow Patrol.
There have been rumors about Courteney getting plastic surgery and Botox. In 2017, she confirmed that she had used fillers but also mentioned that the world of cosmetic procedures can be quite intense.
Courteney Cox talked about how easy it is to get caught up in cosmetic procedures. She said that doctors often suggest small tweaks that seem harmless at first. Over time, these changes can add up, and you might not notice until it looks different in photos or someone points it out.
Eventually, Courteney decided to stop using fillers and embrace her natural self. She now promotes being yourself and often shares makeup-free photos on Instagram, which can inspire others to do the same.
“I’m as natural as I can be. I feel better because I look like myself. I think that I now look more like the person that I was, I hope I do,” Cox said.
“Things are going to change. Everything’s going to drop. I was trying to make it not drop, but that made me look fake. You need movement in your face, especially if you have thin skin like I do. Those aren’t wrinkles—they’re smile lines. I’ve had to learn to embrace movement and realize that fillers are not my friend. “
In 2022, Courteney Cox used an app to see how she might look ten years older, and many of her followers were surprised by the results. She mentioned in the caption that she probably wouldn’t style her hair that way.
Courteney has also been open about her experience with cosmetic procedures. In 2019, she admitted to using lip fillers because she wasn’t happy with her appearance. However, she stopped using them when she realized she didn’t look like herself.
Courteney Cox now feels great about herself. She says she embraces getting older and is happy with how she looks naturally, without trying to change it. She’s focused on growing and improving in other areas of her life.
Courteney Cox was fantastic as Monica Geller on Friends, and people still love watching the show today.
What do you think about Courteney Cox’s views on fillers and cosmetic procedures? Let us know in the comments! And don’t forget to share this article on Facebook with your friends and family!
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