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Dinner is an important meal. It’s reserved for important people; it marks the day.
Today was my first day back at work in a while. I took a few days off to spend with my boyfriend for his birthday. I woke up to my alarm early in the morning, still recovering from a long weekend of music, relaxation, and several fabulous dinners.
After my shift I drove home, looking forward to the transformation to ‘post work Leanne’.
I thought about dinner plans for the night. My boyfriend hosts an Open Mic Night during the farmers Market in downtown Ocean Beach, so we rarely have time to have dinner together Wednesday’s. I decided I would grab a bite to eat at the Farmer’s Market.
I walked down the street to the entrance of the market. I heard the music and smelled the food and my the transformation was complete. I saw a familiar sight at the end of the block. Aleigha. She’s a sweet homeless lady that you can find on predetermined corners at different times of the day. She always smiles at people as they walk by. She’s very generous with her toothless smile. She’s a member of the community. People know her.
She waved at me as I walked into the market. She had her wolf blanket pulled tight around her shoulders. The spring air was slightly breez, but it wasn’t cold. She has talked to me before about the importance of keeping warm throughout the day, instead of getting cold and trying to warm up.
I headed down the road to my favorite Farmers Market fare: Tamales. I waited int he line as the cheerful lady behind the table chatted to passerby in Spanish. When it was my turn, I approached the counter to her smiling face. I ordered two tamales. The usual. Medium Salsa. Gracias.
I weaved through the crowd, a steaming tamale in each had. I turned the corner next to the band. Aleigha was there, leaning against the bike rack as always. She smiled at me again as I approached. I came up next to her and handed her the second tamale. With a murmer of thanks, we both dug in with our plastic forks.
They are her favorite too.
As we ate we listened to the band playing cover songs.
Aleigha is having a bad day today. She told me about her friend, also homeless, who had gotten stabbed in the alley across the street. I knew the story, I had read about it in the paper. I was sorry about her friend, but she was cheered by the warm meal and the conversation.
We talked all through dinner. I shoveled the last bit of food into my mouth before I took both our paper trays and deposited them into the trash can at the end of the block. I offered her a cigarette before I left, which she graciously accepted.
As I turned to leave she put her hand on my shoulder. “Thanks for dinner” she told me. “You are a really good friend.” I was touched by her words. I put my hand over hers.
“I’m really happy that we can be friends” I told her.