Buckets Of Roses

Buckets Of Roses

Short Story By Paul McCann

After quitting his job he had a regular spot at the railway station where he sold flowers from buckets to passer’s by on their way to catch a train . It gave him an opportunity to look for her in the passing crowds .  He first saw her face about a year after his wife died . 

At that particular time he was going through a hard time with grief and loss . Then one day as he was returning home on the train after finishing work a lady stepped off the train  and as she turned around she looked at him .

He had this weird experience . 

It felt as if time stood still and he somehow he recognised her as someone he had seen or been with  somewhere before .

She continued to look at him and then she smiled .

Then after that day 

, he seen her again and again walking past in the crowd at the station . Each time he saw her he had this deja vu feeling like he had been with her in another time and place . Her face haunted him .

So there he stood everyday from dawn to dusk selling his roses in the hope she might walk past .

It was Valentines Day and already he had had sold three times as many roses , as normal which on this occasion were the more expensive long stemmed roses .

There was only one left and he was getting ready to go home when she made an appearance .

 He was so happy to see her .

All the people he had met that day had bought roses for that someone special in their lives . This rose was the one he wanted to give to her his mystery lady .

She walked past and he called out ,

“Don’t wait until it’s too late . Maybe this rose could change the colour of your day .“

She stopped and walked back l his way . Somehow he knew her but didn’t know from where .

He reached her the rose and she took it from him and said ,

“ My husband had never bought me any flowers and now it’s too late . Thank you “

Her words cut him to the core . 

He never bought his wife any flowers while she was alive . The only flowers he could remember were the flowers at her funeral .

At that moment he had another deja vu  feeling . Then he said ,

“ I hope the rose  I gave you will make up for the ones your husband never bought for you. “

She smiled and then  a train arrived and before another word was spoken a busy crowd walked past and in that moment she was gone .

He had only been with her for a moment but in his heart he knew it wouldn’t be the last . He vowed to   keep coming back again just to see her face . That night he had a dream that he was standing waiting as she came walking towards him in a wedding gown .

She was holding the rose he gave her . Then she said to him , 

“ Every rose you sold to passers by makes up for all the flowers you never gave me . Until we meet again my love ”

A choir of angels were singing and she clenching the rose in her teeth and he awoke from the dream with a strong  fragrance of roses in the room .  The scent of roses had remained for a week and he had a wonderful peace in his life that remained with him the great of his life .

He never seen the mystery lady again and remained there in his usual place selling roses from buckets everyday . During his life he had brought happiness to many people with his roses and on the day of his funeral people had said ,  they had never seen as many flowers  before in their life as those that were  donated and brought with the coffin .

He was buried with his wife and a statue was made placed at the railway station as a tribute to him .

The End