Tea Olive Sprigs & $26.67

i'm not a mystic but people can sometimes unexpectedly surprise you. it was one of those days, raining since whenever the senses began to convert from REM--peaceful and tranquil--exuding charming humidity. then you realize that you're at your buddies house and you left your shoes at home, and so it happened for me. i slipped on my bed-room slippers without considering the whether gods cruel sence of irony as i left my house. i concluded while still in bed that my shoes would be getting wet. i was all-too-correct.

as i left my friends house that morning, i noticed his mother was in the front yard trimming a few sprigs from a Tea Olive bush (OSMANTHUS FRAGRANS). after making small talk she offered me a whiff of one of the aromatic sprigs in her hand. i did so and was so amazed that i asked her if i could take a few with me, more to remember that there is wonder in that which is natural, than to remind myself how distant my world is from that which is natural.

then my friend chaufered me to pick up my car from the shop, which underwent several sub-suspension repairs, and amounted to a handsome fee. it's okay. i knew going to the shop, and i had recieved a price estimate that day before. well, when i stepped into the Goodyear lobby--a civilized, emotionless waiting room--i looked at my hand only to discover three sprigs from a Tea Olive bush. lucky me. it souldn't be difficult explaining to an oily-fingernailed, scruffy, leatherneck mechanic the purpose of the flowering greenery in my hand.

should i explain to him that i'm not much of a utilitarian? should i detail the events of that morning, and how the pleasant aroma just made my day? should i stuff them in my pockets like a felon smuggling Canadian pharmaceuticals? or should i just offer him a whiff of the "fragrant Tea Olive blooms"? i did that latter, which he appreciated with the advent of a light in his eyes like a small candle at the back of a dark cathedral.

i then explained my monetary situation and the quote i had recieved the day prior. almost immediately, i noticed that the price on the sheet he examined had a hand-written price exceeding what i had anticipated. then he said, "let me see what i can do for you." after about ten minutes of silence from the both of us, during which he flirted with his computer keyboard, he was able to give me the quoted price, exactly. it turns out he saved me $26.67, (and i think) all for the ambrosial experience from a Tea Olive sprig. (photo by: Tatsuya Sato)