Stranger

It was a dull day, the sky was a heavy with clouds of grey and a damp mist swirled around the village. People went about their business with bowed heads and heavy hearts. Here and there a yellow glow poured from a shop window then melted away into the gloom.


Across a field walked a stranger. In the sky above him the sun peeped through the clouds, leaving in his wake a canopy of deepest blue. As he passed by flowers unfurled their brightly coloured petals and appeared to smile in his direction. Birds sang from the treetops and butterflies fluttered and frolicked in the warmth of the sunbeams.


He climbed over a gate and began walking along the narrow cobbled street; suddenly all around him was bathed in sunlight and as he passed, the people of the village looked up and smiled as a fluffy kitten weaved between his feet. He crossed the bridge over the stream and the rippling water began to glisten and silver fish leapt and dived. A pure white swan glided into view from within a bed of golden reeds which swayed in the newfound warmth, then swam between the lily pads as one by one their flowers opened.


The village folk watched as he walked away, stopping only briefly to look over his shoulder and smile. Then he seemed to fade away. The stranger was no more.