When Noel’s wife, Noeline, died, Noel had Noeline cremated. He took the ashes, buried them in the garden, and planted a beautiful white rose on top.
Each year the rose flowered magnificently. Noel always picked a stem, put it in a vase, and placed it next to Noeline’s photograph on the drinks cabinet in the sitting room.
Then Noel lost his job. The factory where he worked closed. Such are the times.
Noel was offered another job, but it was in another town altogether. He turned it down. How could he leave his rose?