It was a snowy Sunday morning when my friend came knocking on my door. She wasn’t bundled in a heavy winter coat with hat and scarf and woolly mittens on her hands; all she had on were pyjamas, a jacket and untied snow boots. Her hair was wind blown and snow covered. In her hand she held a tea rose.1A garden rose (rosa odorata); any of several cultivated varieties of roses having a scent resembling that of tea. By Dictionary.com
It was the strangest juxtaposition! There I stood in the doorway, transfixed and unable to move. But it was not the cold weather conditions that kept me frozen in my tracks…it was her smile. Soon I felt none of the cold and all of the calm & comfort it radiated.
“Well, aren’t you going to invite me in?” she asked mischievously, while stepping past me into the room. Before peeling off her jacket and removing her boots, she handed me the tea rose.
I stood there mesmerised by the freshness of the bloom; I could feel moisture on the top of my hand from a dew drop…“It’s incredible, isn’t it? “ queried Elsie
“Incredible!” I uttered.
“When I woke up this morning,” she began, “it was from an unpleasant and frightening dream. I couldn’t even remember what it was about, but I’m sure of the residue of emotion left behind. I felt an uncontrollable urge to weep, and so I did ….Finally, the weeping ended and I got up and walked to my bedroom window. While I stood there watching and listening to the blowing snow…something caught my eye.
Unable to make out what it was, I quickly climbed into my snow boots, grabbed a jacket, and went outside to investigate. It was difficult to navigate through the whirling snow and the dim light of dawn. Then I saw it. So alone it stood…the bloom as fresh as a new spring morning.
The leaves provided a delightful contrast to the whiteness of the ground cover; but nothing could have prepared me for the truly surprising tea rose…a magnificent bloom of colour and vibrancy. I bent down to take a closer look and what I saw reflected in those iridescent petals made my heart wild with love! Looking back at me was you, Sandra, pouring a cup of tea, a cup of love and friendship.
This is my story and I’m sipping it!
1 – A garden rose (rosa odorata); any of several cultivated varieties of roses having a scent resembling that of tea. By Dictionary.com