We were walking through town, my husband, my sons and I, looking for a place to have lunch. In a couple hours we were going to take the ferry to the small island where we would be spending the week. In my hand was a bouquet of flowers, ready to be given to a stranger. Just who that would be was yet to be determined. Complicating my mission was the fact the rest of my family was walking about five paces ahead, apparently embarrassed by, well, me. They communicated clearly that they were not willing participants in my adventure.
Trying to be mindful of their discomfort, I dropped back even more. But then I found that their unease was catching. The thought of handing flowers to a stranger on the street was starting to make me feel shy. Deciding that I was on vacation and should be feeling no stress from kindness, I ducked into a cafe. There I left the flowers on a table with a note for the finder, wishing him or her well, and with hopes that the flowers would brighten his or her day.
I caught up to the family and assured them that the flower giving was truly anonymous. We were off to a kind and embarassment free start to our vacation.
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