#7 COMMENTS* (revised 6/10) "Thirty-six Tangos.....I knew when it was over"

I knew when it was over..........

She always insisted on “Tangos”.

The bright crimson red geranium flower matched perfectly with the shutters of her home.

And it was always 36 large plants, no more, no less. I would choose the best 36 and store them in my garage at home...........just for her.

Each May, each season, Emily Hanson would borrow her husband Nate’s work van. We would share laughter and tears as we loaded the van carefully; the birth of her new grand babies, her battle and victory over cancer, and their new winter retirement home in Arizona. We would wave goodbye for another year as she drove out the gates with the Tangos and all the other flowers she would need for her spring planting.

On this day, Emily said proudly, “John, this is Melinda, my granddaughter. She is the third generation of Hansons' who is shopping at your garden center.”

I took the Tangos to the van and opened the doors.

The entire floor was packed with all the flowers she was going to need for spring.

She looked at me and with embarrassment said,

“John, I just needed the Tangos. I bought the rest of my flowers at Home Depot........They did not have the Tangos.”

I knew at that moment that there was no future for my little garden store.

John Gaston

Springfield, Massachusetts