February (Friday) the 13th

An ordinary day. I had promised my daughter that I would go to Costco to get some stuff that we needed. No big deal. I wasn't focused on the date - Friday the 13th - which most people view as unlucky but to me it's just another day. So, I'm standing in line at checkout and every check stand has at least 4 people waiting with huge Costco orders. I'm in no hurry so I'm just patiently waiting. All of a sudden, to my right, a very lovely lady steped into the end of the line and she had just one item, a large bouquet of roses. She looked up and down the row of check stands and resigned herself to having to wait her turn. Then my line stared to move, quickly, so I gave a little "pssst" to get her attention and waved her into the line ahead of me. She moved over with a beautiful smile and looked into my cart. "No flowers for your someone special?" she asked. "No one special." I said with a shrug. She put her flowers on the conveyor and then turned to help me put my stuff on the belt. The cashier finished ringing her up and as she picked up the flowers she dropped her card. I reached down to pick it up and as I handed it to her she had pulled one rose out of the bouquet and handed it to me and gave me a hug. I said in her ear " I hope someone does something really special for you too." I was so taken by surprise that it took me a moment to recover and to finish with my order. Then, as I passed by the line at the food concession, there she was, smiling at me and she held out her hand. I made my way over to her and took her hand and told her that she had not just made my day but that she had made my whole year. She gave me another hug and then our lines forced us to move in opposite directions.

As I made my way to the exit I kept asking myself why I didn't go back to give her my number or ask for hers but I felt that it would be wrong. After all, she was buying roses for her "someone special" and she was just a sweet lady who decided to share one with me. At the door, the lady who checks receipts pointed at the rose with a question in her eyes and I told her quickly what had happened and she said "That's sweet. I would much rather have a single rose than the stuff I usually get". She put a smiley face on my receipt and I was on my way to the car. Half of me wanting to go back and the other half wanting to get away as fast as I could with the understanding that they both had a "someone special" who might not be perfect, but they did have someone.