Freezing weather and white roses

 The day before New Years Day an old man called the flower shop and ordered a very expensive bouquet for his daughter. He wanted a dozen white roses in a vase. The manager said that white roses may be hard to find but she expressed a willingness to try. Fortunately when the delivery came it included twelve white roses. Actually they were ever so slightly cream-colored, but they were the most beautiful roses I had ever seen. We get all colors of roses, so one might wonder why slightly off-white would be appealing. These roses looked good enough to eat. They were the color of quality white cheddar cheese The petals were alive with soft light like someone had placed a tiny light bulb inside each bud. In short they were perfect in every way. I knew it would be a pleasure to deliver these roses to the lucky daughter.

The location was about 20 miles away from the shop. We had other deliveries in the vicinity so it didn't seem too far out of the way. I pulled into the daughter's street and with a combination of GPS and scoping out house numbers I found the spot. I pulled into the driveway and found no cars which is always a bad sign. I knocked on the door but no one answered except for a dog inside barking his head off. It was 28 degrees Farenheit so I couldn't just leave the flowers on the front porch and drive away. Those roses would have frozen on the front porch and those beautiful creamy petals would have turned brown as soon as they thawed inside the house. I didn't know what I was going to do.

I walked around the perimeter of the house. There was a drafty unheated shed so that would not do. There was no basement. The back deck was open to the elements. I had the phone number of the old man who had ordered them. I called him and asked if I could leave them at his house which was close by. He said I could do that. The Flower Man had saved the day again!

When I got to the address the old man gave me I was astonished by the modesty of the home The old man lived in an apartment inside a chopped up single family home. The surroundings were very neat but simple. There was a gravel driveway with ruts and snow heaped up here and there. I knocked on the old man's apartment door. I was feeling relieved to be able to deliver this expensive and precious arrangement. Nobody answered on the first knock. No worries. The old man could take a while to get to the front door. After what I felt was a polite amount of time I knocked again. No answer again in spite of the old man's previous assurances that he was home. I double-checked my manifest and GPS location to make sure I was in the right place. I was in the right place. After the third knock I was sure the old man wasn't coming to the door. I thought I heard a television playing inside but I couldn't be sure. There was a car in the driveway, but it probably belonged to another tenant. I gave up and put the beautiful cargo, those cream white roses, back in the delivery van.

I hate taking flowers back to the shop but in this instance that was what I was going to have to do. You can't just leave a $100 flower arrangement on someone's porch in freezing weather.

The next day the manager told me to try again to deliver those gorgeous roses. I placed them in the van so I could see them in the rearview mirror. They were that beautiful. I drove again to the daughter's house and again I found no one home. It was even colder than yesterday so leaving them was out of the question. Again there was no car in the driveway and no one answered my knocking except for the noisy dog. He certainly couldn't unlock and open the door for me. I called the old man's number again but this time there no anwer. I drove around the corner to his apartment, but no one answered the door again. I did not know what else to do. I had no choice but to put the beautiful and expensive arrangement back into the van for another twenty mile trip back to the shop.

The third day, the manager called both the old man and his daughter and got a full assurance that she was going to be home. I made the 20 mile trek for the third time and when I pulled into the driveway I saw a car. Things were looking up. I knocked on the door and the dog started barking as expected. Soon however a real live woman unlocked the door and opened it. Success at last! I handed over the beautiful roses to their rightful owner. It felt like losing an old friend when I turned loose of the vase, but then the woman's smile made everything all right She went on for a few minutes about how lovely the flowers were. Then she asked me to wait just a minute. She came back with a fiver and handed it to me. I smiled back at her and said thank you. Then I went to the nearby convenience store and bought myself a coffee and a donut with the fiver. I had enough money left to throw a decent tip in the tip jar at the cash register. Spread the good fortune, don't you know?

On this trip I was reminded that perseverance is the key to success. I learned that a poor old man will go to great expense to please his daughter. I learned that a daughter who is kind is to be greatly appreciated. I don't get many tips as a flower delivery man, but when I do it makes me happy. I was reminded of the severity of weather and how we must always bend to Mother Nature. I learned that a small delivery van which gets good gas mileage is a blessing. I was reminded how great it fells to make others feel great. Isn't that really what this life is all about?