I walked into the grocery store, not particularly interested in buying anything. The pain of losing my husband of 37 years was still raw. And this store held so many sweet memories.

Rudy often came with me and every time he’d pretend to go off and look for something special. And I’d then see him walking back to me with three yellow roses. Rudy knew I loved them.

The grocery store is different since Rudy passed away. Shopping for one took time, a little more thought than it had for two. Standing by the meat, I searched for the perfect small steak and remembered how Rudy had loved his steak.

Suddenly a woman came beside me. I watched as she picked up a package of T-bones and dropped them in the basket, hesitated, and then put them back. She saw me watching her and smiled. “My husband loves T-bones, but honestly, at these prices, I don’t know.”

I swallowed the emotion down my throat and met her blue eyes. “My husband passed away eight days ago,” I told her. Glancing at the package, I fought to control the tremble in my voice. “Buy him the steaks. And cherish every moment you have together.”

She shook her head and I saw the emotion in her eyes as she placed the package in her basket and wheeled away. Ten minutes later, I saw her walking towards me, carrying a package in her arms. On her face was the brightest smile I had ever seen. As she came near, I saw what she held and tears began misting in my eyes.

“These are for you,” she said and placed three beautiful yellow roses in my arms. She leaned over and placed a gentle kiss on my check, then smiled again. I wanted to tell her what she’d done, what the rose meant, but still unable to speak, I watched as she walked away as tears clouded my vision.

I looked down at the beautiful roses nestled in the green tissue wrapping and found it almost unreal. How did she know?

Suddenly the answer seemed so clear. I wasn’t alone. “Oh, Rudy, you haven’t forgotten me, have you?” I whispered, with tears in my eyes. He was still with me, and she was his angel.

Every day be thankful for what you have and who you are.

【日积月累】

raw adj. 刺痛的

T-bone n. 丁字牛排(从牛腰部细小的末端提取的含有T形骨的厚的上等牛排)

wheel v. (鸟等)盘旋;突然转身，转变方向;旋转，转动

vision n. 视觉，眼光

【参考译文】

超市之行

我走进食品杂货店的时候，没什么心思买东西。失去了相伴37载的丈夫，疼痛依然强烈。这家店保留着我们那么多美好的回忆。

鲁迪常常和我一起来，每次他都假装走开去找某件商品，接着我就会看到他拿着三支黄玫瑰走回来，他知道我喜欢。

鲁迪去世后商店变得不一样了。一个人买东西费时间，比两个人一起买时用得多。站在肉柜边，我寻找最佳的小牛排，想起鲁迪有多么喜欢吃牛排。

突然一位女士走到我身边。我看见她拿起一块包装好的丁字牛排放进篮子里，犹豫了一会儿，又放了回去。她发现我在看她，便笑了：“我丈夫爱吃牛排，但是说实话，我不知道有这么贵。”

我抑制住情绪的波动，直视着她蓝色的眼睛：“我丈夫8天前去世了，”我告诉她。我瞟了一眼那块牛排，努力不让声音颤抖。“给他买下这块牛排吧。珍惜和他在一起的每一刻。”

她摇了摇头，把牛排放进篮子里，转身离开了，我看到了她眼里的触动。10分钟后，她朝我走来，抱着一个包裹。她脸上绽开着我见过最灿烂的笑容。当她走近的时候，我看清了她抱的是什么，眼睛开始迷蒙。

“给你，”她说，把3支漂亮的黄色玫瑰花放进我怀里。靠过来在我脸颊上轻轻吻了一下，然后又笑了。我想告诉她她真正做了什么，想告诉她这些玫瑰意味着什么，但是说不出话来，看着她离去，我的视线开始模糊。

我低下头看着依偎在绿色包装纸里的美丽玫瑰，感觉一点都不真实。她怎么知道?

突然答案变得清晰。我不是一个人。“噢，鲁迪，你没有忘记我，对吗?”我含泪轻声问。他还在我身边，她是他派来的天使。

不管你是谁，拥有什么，每一天都心怀感激吧。

【人生启迪】

你肯定有几家经常关顾的商店，和里面的店员已经熟络，和其他几个常客有了点头之交。你不知道他们的姓名，可记得他们的特征，那个眼睛大大的收银员，那一对总是一起来买东西的夫妻，那一个钟爱酸奶的女孩。你在关注别人的同时，他们也在关注你。不要吝惜你的关心，它不会因为使用过度而减少，反而会越来越多。终于一天你会发现你付出的关心都得到了回应。