On May 31, 2023, we have decided to close our business, with the last day of operations. Thank you for your continued support

Late at night, as the date changed to May 31, I sent an email to my mother, just as the final deliveries were about to begin.

"Be careful on your last delivery. Thank you for everything you've done!"

Before 4 am in the morning, I received a reply from my mother.
She expressed her gratitude to various people and mentioned that she would listen to Japanese traditional songs, which my father loved dearly, while making the deliveries. She also mentioned how she would be delighted to see the beautiful morning sunrise.

I ended up unable to sleep until nearly 5 am.
I wasn't doing anything in particular, just lost in thought.
I felt sorry for my mother, who was out delivering alone, feeling lonely.

In the morning, despite my lack of sleep, I began to prepare for work and checked my SNS messages.
There were a few messages from my mother, sent before 7 am when she finished the deliveries.

The moment I read them, my breath caught for a second.

A vibrant array of flowers awaited at the final delivery of the dairy.
I held my smartphone in one hand, overcome with sobs.

Had there ever been flowers that shook my heart so deeply?
I wanted to express my feelings to my mother, but I didn't know how.

It was the people in the community who did it instead.
The thoughtfulness conveyed through the flowers was more profound than any words, and I felt grateful and overwhelmed, tears streaming down my face.

As a human being, I truly wished to be someone capable of such consideration.

Why does everyone seem to know that my mother and I are burdened with such complex emotions?
And why do they know how to support us when such individuals appear?

Oh, flowers...

The dairy that closed its curtains after 33 years.
Amidst the swirling emotions within my mother and me, everything was sublimated by these flowers.
They made me feel that we had fulfilled our role in the community, from the depths of my heart.

The gamble my mother took 33 years ago has blossomed into these flowers.

On May 31, 2023, the dairy came to an end. Thank you, everyone.

Postscript:
While going to work on May 31st, I felt compelled to put these feelings into words.

For me, writing allowed me to naturally reflect on the past 33 years. The main theme is the closure of an ordinary shop, something that can happen anywhere.

In other words, I wanted to convey that acts of kindness like this can be found everywhere.

They are often quiet, unassuming, and fragile, existing without the need for search or discovery; they are simply there.