The
Flower Girl
By
R. e. Taylor
After
a week of work, family, money problems and just life in general
Joshua would get up early on Saturday morning, hop in his car and
just start driving. It didn't matter what direction he drove in, he
just wanted to get away for a few hours. But, on one Saturday morning
in June something changed and after that he took the same route week
after week until the leaves had all fallen from the trees.
That
day he left as usual after rolling a set of dice to see what
direction to travel in. He thought it maybe was silly to do this, but
hell he did it every week. Highway two through four would mean
travel east, five through eight meant south and nine through twelve
meant west. Anyway, he rolled the dice as usual, and a one and a
three came up so east it was.
He
had his usual places to stop once he got started. When he was going
east, it was a little mom and pop diner that specialized in three egg
western omelets with a heaping pile of fried potatoes on the side.
Joshua knew the waitress, so she always made sure that everything was
covered by a thick layer of homemade Greek sauce. The thing was, he
knew that if he survived breakfast he would have a great day. That
morning was going to be a little extra great because the waitress
walked over and told him of an estate sale going on about a mile
away.
Joshua
finished his breakfast, left a couple dollar tip and started off for
the estate sale. He found it about a mile away just as the waitress
had said. It was in a very old building that the city had condemned
after the owner died, but the furnishings and everything inside was
beautiful and a lot of it was museum quality.
There
were people sitting on the porch behind a sign that read, “Anything
you want $20.” The woman behind the table said that you had to pay
$20 to get in, and you can take anything you can carry at no extra
cost. Of course, Joshua thought that was the best deal he had heard
in years so, he gladly paid the money and walked in. He saw so much
that he wanted and so much that he couldn't have but when he hit the
second floor he accidentally found his prize for the day.
He
walked into the last bedroom on the right. There was a door that led
up to the attic and a bed that was easily seen to be a boy's bed. The
dust was so deep on the floor that Joshua caused a cloud to form just
by walking around. He stepped gingerly across the floor until he
heard the creak of a loose floorboard. He stopped and looked down.
There were no nails holding the board down, so he reached down,
grabbed the end and lifted it up. Under the floor was his treasure.
There was a jar, sealed with wax that held hundreds of coins. He
could see pennies, two and three cent coins, silver dollars and even
a few gold five and ten dollar coins. From the dates that he could
see all of the coins were of the civil war era, up until the mid
1880's.
He
grabbed the jar and walked back downstairs. Thanking the women, he
got into his car and drove off continuing his eastward journey.
Twenty
miles down the road he was going through another little town when a
farmer's market caught his eye. Of course, he stopped and started
walking up and down the rows of vendors. There was everything there
anyone could ever want. The Amish were there, with handcrafted
baskets, jellies and organic vegetables. Farmers were there selling
everything from their own produce to all-natural honey and candles
made of pure bee's wax.
Joshua
had spent nearly $100 on different things that caught his attention.
His favorite was some honeysuckle honey from an old woman who
probably spent her life at and this or any other farmer's markets
somewhere in the area. Joshua usually paid $9.95 for an eight ounce
jar, but that old woman was just so darn cute that he didn't mind
paying the $9.95 price she asked. Then he saw a little girl carrying
a bundle of flowers.
She
was about ten years old, had fiery ginger hair which she had tied
into pig tails that reached down past her shoulders. Her face was
covered with freckles from the summer sun and she was wearing a
cotton dress in pastel pink and violet. “Would you like to buy some
flowers,” she asked with the most adorable smile.
Joshua
was hooked. “How much are they darling,” he asked. She replied
that they were 25 cents a piece or five for a dollar. He started
looking through his money when his thought went back to a day when he
was just 7 years old. He, along with his little brother and their
friend, set up a Kool-aid stand in front of their house. They charged
ten (s) cents for a small glass. Anyway, this car pulled up in front
of them and asked for a glass and when Joshua asked for the ten cents
the man gave him a dollar bill and told them to keep the change.
“My
mother said that if I earn enough money this summer I can buy a
bike,” said the little girl…
Joshua
had the money in his hand. “I'll tell you what,” he said. “I
take one flower.” He reached over and took beautiful rose, held it
for a minute and broke the stem off and slid it gently into one of
her pigtails. She laughed so hard, but the laughter ended and instead
turned into the most beautiful smile when he handed her a ten dollar
bill and told her to keep the change.
Week
after week Joshua stopped at the same farmer's market just to buy one
flower. He always paid with a ten dollar bill and refused any attempt
of her's to give him any change.
The
last week of the summer, the little girl, was at the market just as
always except this time she didn't have any flowers, but the second
she saw Joshua her face brightened and her freckles seems to dance on
her face and her smile was back bigger than ever.
“Hello
Little One,” Joshua said as he pat her on the head “How
are you today?”
“I
am doing great,” she replied. “I am so happy!”
“Did
you get your bike,” he asked. Just then he could see a young boy,
maybe five years old, riding a silver and red bike out of the corner.
“It
was never for a bike for me,” she said. “My baby brother was born
with a problem in his brain and the doctors said that he would never
walk much less ride a bike. I promised him at the start of the summer
that I would buy him a bike if he learned how to walk. We played and
practiced all summer and then suddenly he stood up against a table
and took two steps, so I got him the bike I promised him.
Joshua
was so taken with the story that you could see tears running down his
face, at her generosity and love for her little brother, and it got
even worse when he found out that the little girl, due to her
unselfish sacrifice, still didn't have a bike of her own.
“Do
me a favor, please” he asked. “See that little purple flower next
to those stairs.” She looked and saw the exact flower that he was
looking at. “Now, Little One please pick it and bring it to me.”
She did as he asked. It was a tiny little flower, no bigger than the
eraser on a number 2 pencil.
He
took the flower in his hand and broke the stem off. The little girl
was watching and smiling the whole time. He took the stem and placed
it gently in her ponytail just as he had done so many times.
“How
much do I owe you,” he asked.
“Well
Sir, it was always one flower for 25 cents,” she said with a smile.
“I
don't have any change right now,” he said with a sad look on his
face. “Will you wait right here while I get some change from the
store across the street?” She said that she would wait. He
was gone almost a half hour. Joshua made it a point to come into the
park from behind her. “Now, close your eyes.” Once again she did
as she was told and when she opened them Joshua was standing in front
of her with a brand new mountain bike. “Little One I want you to
have this so you can go riding with your brother.”
She
had no idea what to say. She just stood there and looked at the bike
while her brother rolled up beside her on his. Finally, Joshua broke
the silence and told the little girl to keep the change. She
said a quick thank you, but the joy on her face was one he would
never forget, before she and her young brother rode off into the
sunset.
Now,
Joshua still drives by that farmer's market every once in a while.
Occasionally during what was left of the nice weather he would still
drive by. Once, he did see that little girl riding through the
park. He stopped to say hi but, by the time he got out of the car she
was already long gone. Still, he keeps on looking to see her with
that ginger hair, freckles and her contagious smile just one more
time. But, he never did sadly, in all the years, after that one very
special summer.
