Page 8 - The Spirit of Christmas 1940
P. 8

Chapter 1

           a penny for the latest edition. Just as Jimmy was about to yell out
           once again, he was stopped dead in his tracks, his mouth left open
           as if his jaw had suddenly frozen.  The reason for the shock was
           the entrance of the flower barrow being pushed onto the platform
           by Rose.


             Rose provided such a vital service to the many customers of
           Church Street station providing flowers for the reuniting husbands
           and wives, girlfriends and boyfriends, mothers, daughters fathers,
           sons and of course, for the servicemen and women returning
           from the war.  Christmas, though, was a good opportunity to lift
           spirits with holly wreaths, mistletoe and all sorts of decorations
           for family Christmas trees, mantelpieces and dinner tables.  But
           although the station needed her, she also needed the station, and
           her stall.  Rose was an only child and the only source of income
           for her dad who had lost his legs during the First World War. Her
           mother had died when she was just a young girl leaving Rose to
           grow up faster than she wanted.  Still, she made ends meet and for
           the most of the time, she and her dad were ok.

             Her flower stall was an old wooden cart but beautifully set up
           with all sorts of flowers and plants which brought the tired wood
           to life. The colours were simply stunning and to add to the magic,
           were the seasonal special extras. Just perfect.  But despite the
           beauty there was still a job to do.


             As Rose prepared for the days business, she was still being
           stared at by the unwitting Jimmy.  He had been besotted by
           Rose ever since he had been selling papers at the station.  But
           although he had a very over-confident attitude, it was just a front.
           Underneath the Cockney charm, Jimmy was a bit of an introvert
           when it came to talking to the opposite sex.  Rosie, as he called
           her, was the one he feared the most.  Certainly not because there
           was anything scary about her but because he had so many feelings
           for her.  He could never bring himself to go over and tell her,
           instead he would ply her with gifts from his dodgy dealings.  He
           thought to himself that if he could look after her then maybe one
           day it would just happen.  SHe may see how he felt and make
           the first move.  Or at leat, that was the theory.  The problem was,
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