A woman walked into the grocery store not particularly interested in buying groceries. She wasn't hungry. The pain of losing her husband of 57 years was still too raw. And this grocery store held so many sweet memories.
Her husband often came to the store with her and almost every time he'd pretend to go off and look for something special. She knew what he was up to. She’d always spot him walking down the aisle with three yellow roses in his hands. He knew she loved yellow roses.
With a heart filled with grief, the woman only wanted to buy a few items and leave, but even grocery shopping was different since her husband had passed on. Shopping for one person took time, and required a little more thought than it had for two people.
Standing by the meat, she searched for the perfect small steak and remembered how he had loved his steak.
Suddenly another woman appeared beside her. She was blonde, slim and lovely in a soft green pantsuit. The older woman watched as the younger woman picked up a large package of T-bone steaks and dropped them in her basket; hesitated, and then put them back in the cooler. She turned to go and once again reached for the package of steaks. From the corner of her eye she could see herself being observed. The lovely blond paused and turned and said sadly “My husband loves T-bones, but honestly, at these prices, I don't know.”
Swallowing the emotion in her throat the woman looked into the strangers pale blue eyes. “My husband passed away eight days ago,” she told her. Glancing at the package in her hands, she fought to control the tremble in her voice. “Buy him the steaks. And cherish every moment you have together.”
The young woman shook her head. The raw emotion could be seen in her eyes as she placed the package of steaks in her basket and wheeled away.
Turning away, the woman was once again alone with her thoughts. After pushing her cart across the length of the store to the dairy products, she stood, trying to decide which size milk she should buy. A quart, she thought, and moved on to the ice cream. If nothing else, she could always fix herself a bowl of ice cream.
She placed the ice cream in her cart and looked down the aisle toward the front. She saw first the green suit, and then recognized the pretty lady coming towards her. In her arms she was carrying a package. On her face was the brightest smile she’d ever seen. She thought that she could see a soft halo encircling the young blonde’s head as she kept walking toward her. The young woman’s eyes were focused intensely on the older woman.
As the young woman got closer, the older woman saw what the young woman was holding and her eyes began to mist. “These are for you,” the young woman said, and placed three beautiful long stemmed yellow roses in the older woman’s arms. “When you go through the line, they will know that these are paid for.” She leaned over and placed a gentle kiss on the older woman’s cheek, then smiled again and walked away. The older woman wanted to tell her what she'd done, what the roses meant, but still unable to speak, she watched as the young woman walked away; as tears clouded her vision.
The woman looked down at the beautiful roses nestled in the green tissue wrapping and found it almost unreal. How did she know? Suddenly the answer seemed so clear; she wasn't alone. “Oh, you haven't forgotten me” she whispered, with tears flowing from her eyes. Her husband was still with her, and that young woman had been his angel sent to comfort her. Her joy was overwhelming.
Everyday angels enter our lives and bring us roses. Although we may often feel isolated and alone, we are never by ourselves.
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