buy flowers for a stranger

is that when I bought a bunch of flowers and gave them out to people on the street they kept asking me “Why are you doing this? Are you with some organization?” They just couldn’t believe I was doing it to make the world a little happier.

This actually happened a few weeks ago. She wasn’t quite a stranger… she was an attorney at the EEOC who had received some rather bad news. But since we’d never talked or been formally introduced, I count her as a stranger for this goal.

They were white roses. Someone later told me there was some bizarre Victorian meaning assigned to them, but mostly I bought them because they looked like they’d have picked up my spirits.

She was grateful, and a bit puzzled. Men don’t normally buy women flowers without some romantic connotation, I suppose. But I spoke to her and just gave her my heartfelt condolences. She understood and thanked me.

Great goal. I recommend it.

I went to special presentation lunch couple of weeks back and got given a bunch of amazing white roses. On the train home I lifted them up to smell and this little old lady said to me “what beautiful flowers”.

Dunno why but without even thinking I just said “would you like them” and gave them to her despite her protests. They were so so beautiful but not as nice as the smile she gave me back.

I’ve never seen her before or since but sorta better that way.

I remember, as a kid, thinking that I wished I could cheer up the adults. They always looked so miserable—when driving, when working, and even when talking to one another.

Now that I’m supposed to be an adult (by about a decade, cough), everyone still looks miserable. I’d like to do something about that, sometime.