The four bouquets of the apocolypse.
Was very much looking forward to my turn to do the weekly shop this week. I was up and dressed ready to go at eight o clock this morning my bags ready and my shopping list written.
Even so, the queue was quite large when I pulled up at the supermarket. Most people, this time wore face masks and gloves. There was still a good variety of age groups, elderly included. The rule of one in, one out of the shop was being adhered to and the neatly sprayed lines on the floor let us all fall into our respected distances as we waited in the car park. People sat in cars as the rule of one person per shop is strictly enforced by the security on the door.
It didn’t take me long to enter the shop and once in, I hurried round with my list and was done quite quickly so I joined the nicely spaced queue. My day was going okay, my shop was a good one, I’d got everything I needed, I would return a food hero and save the day with crisps, bananas and flour (amongst other sensible things).
Unlike the woman who decided to jump the queue with only her four bouquet of flowers in her basket. Bright and cheery and completely inedible.
No matter if you use social media or not, the message is pretty clear right now. We leave the house once a week for essential food shopping.
Essentials.
Flowers? Oh dear.
She’d jumped the queue for starters so the gentleman in front of me let rip in no uncertain terms as where she could place her behind in the queue whilst glowering at the cheery flowers. If the supermarket checkout lady could have killed flowers with her eyes, that would have been the moment.
As I drove out of the car park she was hurriedly packing her bunches of cheery posies whilst a furious masked woman (who had broken her place in the queue), gesticulated at her little load of flowers. Through her mask the words screeched that those weren’t going to feed anyone and making sure the entire car park knew of her cardinal sin.
I presumed they were for graves for Easter Weekend but I hope she realised the cemeteries were shut for now and her flowers, although well meant, won’t meet their intended destination and will stay cheery in her house whilst she’ll have to face the queue again for her actual food shop.
In other news, the lock-down has been extended and the sun is warmer than ever today.
Posted on April 9, 2020, in Uncategorized and tagged covid 19, Drawing, flowers, Illustration, lock-down, pandemic, quarantine, self isolation, Sketchbook. Bookmark the permalink. 11 Comments.
Doodlemum 
Great story
I wonder what was really behind this.
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Maybe people need to lighten up a bit.
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I think tension is very high right now as we can’t do the things without a lot of restrictions placed on us.
There’s a lot of frustration. There’s also the hospital carers seeing people dying and then having to resume normality.
It’s a very tough time as we adjust. 😪
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We find out what we are made of at times like this. For example: our local charity store closed recently because of the social restrictions. I guess, like everyone else, they will resume when things calm down. In the meantime, the donations have been piling up and a homeless bloke and his dog took the opportunity (with the store closed) to keep warm (we are quite high up here and the forrest is nearby — it get cold). I’ve spoken to him each day as I pass by with my dog. He lasted for four very cold nights before the charity shop people drove him away. He would have needed to move once the shop reopened, but that is many weeks away. How hard would it have been (not to mention kind) to have let him stay in the covered alcove and be dry and warm? As I said, it is at times like this that we find out who we really are.
Terry
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Do you know here in Wales all homeless people have finally been housed in accommodation? Took a global pandemic but goes to show that things can indeed change.
I sincerely hope that poor person has found respite and a roof over his head. Its what we all deserve as human beings. 😊
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One of my former students posted this:– “Borrowed & shared
I’ve seen a lot of nasty posts in regards to people making “non-essential” trips…
Do you ever think maybe that guy buying a litre of paint knows he must keep busy because idle hands in the past has caused him to relapse and pick up that case of beer ?
So he’s using this time to do home improvements, something that keeps his mind busy while feeling a sense of accomplishment, trying to avoid painful triggers while possibly alone ?
Or maybe that lady buying bags of soil and seeds, has struggled with depression and suicide ?
How do you know that planting and watching something beautiful grow during this time of darkness , isn’t essential to her, helping her to hold on to what little hope she might still have…
Those 2 women out walking together are barely keeping things together for their kids and partners at home and that walking with a friend is relieving stress so they can go home and be strong for their families.
Or those 2 guys working out in the park are so stressed as they’ve lost their jobs and their families are depending on them financially to make it through until the crisis is over. By having a mate’s talk it’s reducing the fights at home due to all the stress they are under.
We need to remember that it is impossible to know just by looking at a situation from “our” small lens what someone is truly going through or where their mental health is at .
Everyone handles chaos and healing through different means, and I know we are all on edge but please stop being so judgmental of others.
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My sentiments entirely. In fact next time I go food shopping [and let’s face it, the supermarkets STOCK flowers] I’m going to buy a bouquet for the vase in my sitting room.
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… having said which, I’m with Doodlemum 100% about queue jumping. Not on.
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Big no no 😱 the whole shop physically bristled when she did it.
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You simply don’t know, and never will know who those flowers were for and where they were going to end up. I hope they brought great joy.
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Why making it so hard, if she wants those flowers, millions of flowers are shredded right now, because they can’t get to the ppl as normaly they would go…
Our country delivers the most flowers over the whole world, and even with this Easter weekend in mind, they will not be send out to the Pope for one… wich is normally a done deal.
And over here, we are asked to BUY FLOWERS for others, or ourselfs, so over here you will hear cheers and applause if you buy flowers… in the supermarket, they got them right? So why not…
X
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