Beautiful
It was unusually sunny out. Brad lugged the ceramic vase onto the walk in front of the window. He gently lifted the stems of the chrysanthemums and admired the aromatic petals. As he stepped into the shop Christina rushed past him. She mumbled a how you doing today before she rushed into her chores. He did not answer his employee. He was trying something new today. He folded the green paper around the lemon balm in his hands folding it neatly into a point. He heard her open the register. He smelled the balm. Boy! Mix that with some mint and you'd have good tea! Another idea forced its way into his mind. Brad smiled. He turned to gaze upon the floral shop his sister had given him. He envisioned giving away a sample of growing herbs with their sister plants. His imagination wafted through his good sense and danced with his enthusiasm. He smiled again.
Across the beautifully sunlit room Christina smiled as well. 'Look at him', she thought. 'Coming up with another idea! ' She held much respect for Brad. She thought he did very well with his sisters' old shop. She was glad to see him carry it on after her death. She was not in love with him but she admired him. In her heart she had grown to like the people and routine of this infectious shop. She spotted Brad as he fumbled in his pocket for his cell. She heard him reciting his ideas into the recorder. Christina smiled harder. She'd never leave.
The next day was not as easy. Brad ruffled his hair in frustration. "Temper" Christina soothed. She removed the molasses from the counter. Poor Brad. She accomplished several small issues to avoid one large one and he tried to rush through one large dilemma to get to several little ones. They looked at one another. "Trade?" They asked in unison. Happily Brad grabbed the pen and paperwork. He grinned as he scrambled from the counter to the office behind it. "Have fun." He teased . But Christina didn't mind. She saw the layout of the decor as soon as the furniture arrived. Easily, she assembled each section. She rolled the fake granite counter along the only windowless wall . The metal chairs were cute with their curled bottoms. With only one or two at a table, they brought a simplistic ease to the floral shop. Christina imitated tea with friends, alone with devices, and waiting on an order. She loved it. She walked between the sets to simulate ease of shopping. Perfect. All too quickly, she was done. Reluctantly, she returned to the rest of her responsibilities. At least she didn't have to do the paperwork.
In the office Brad chuckled. What a sweet trade. He scanned his emails. He was done so quickly that he felt guilty for his employee. He punched a few keys to access the monitors. Wow! Brad stood. He stared at his shop in contentment. How did she do that, alone? And so quickly! He watched as Christina darted across the screen. She paused , hung her head, wiped her eyes. He watched as she shook her head and hands as if to cast off some lingering burden. How long has she been doing that? He strolled out to her.
Christina turned to face her boss. She'd heard him approaching. He reached into his pocket for a mint and asked "You okay?" Christina wasn't. Her heart and mind were tired. Her home life was so distraught that only her job soothed her. She would not burden her boss with her problems. She looked over at him and said, No, I'm not okay. I'm torn up. I can't sleep. I might have to be homeless with my mom. My brother can be so careless! so rude- He treats our mother like dirt!" Whoa! Christina clamped her mouth shut. Where did that come from? Why would she tell him that? She had to work for him! She was frantic. Brad nodded. To her amazement he flipped the handwritten sign on the door from Open to Closed. He returned to sit at a table. He pulled a chair from the table beside him. When she sat, he leaned forward. He seemed to be waiting for her to finish. No way! Christina thought. She had been close to his sister, not to him! They sat in silence for a few minutes. When she didn't speak Brad told her. "God can make a way out of that situation. " Christina's mind whirled. God? Oh, yeah! Celine told her that her brother was saved. Christina didn't fully understand what saved meant. She stared at her boss.
