It was a full day of much doing. A kitchen helper was sick and another had slept in, putting the cook in a frenzy of feeling too far behind. I’ll go down there, I said, and I put on my slide-on sandals and left. Our cook is an interesting person, as I found out even more. She gets up at 3AM on the days that she works. “Why??”, I asked her. It’s just what she does. She’s got to let the dog out and feed him, and make sure she has enough time for her prayers. It’s the only way she is able to have peace inside.

“Please help me remember I have a meeting this morning”, I said to my husband as I passed by the breakfast table. It’s not his responsibility to remind me, and I’d set a reminder alarm on my phone, but some things you have to try hard to not forget. She told me to bring a Bible verse along, so I did. After transferring the aloe and some catching up conversation, we exchanged our verses. She wanted to give me an extra plant, but I had to make sure she would not be offended if it didn’t survive.

She gives me things to take home. Once it was furry socks and washcloths. This time it was a jar of Florida shells, along with a homemade basket made of solely of pine needles. She’d taken them home after her husband’s mother had passed, but didn’t need two. I know we are all trying to unburden ourselves from the excess of things. She’s needing to also downsize from the things that need tending. The plant I feel could go in the school room, as could the jar of shells to be used as a prop.