At 1:00 four other homeless workers showed up. Each had worked for Jennie before, and confidently went to work after reading a chart on the wall. Sunmi, the large woman who was serving chili yesterday, didn't read the chart. Jennie instructed her verbally as a matter of course. I suspected Sunmi couldn't read. Jennie just took it in stride and ignored the limitation. In fact, she put Sunmi in charge of teaching me how to brown the beef. Sunmi smiled and waved me over to the grill.
Sunmi redundantly educated me about washing my hands and using latex gloves, which I took in stride. She showed me the controls for the hood and emphasized the exhaust fan had to be on when the grill was on. I had lessons regarding grill controls and clean up. It was fifteen minutes before Sunmi thought we were ready to get the meat from the cooler. Her personality was a lot like Jennie's, only leaning more toward the compassionate side.
Sunmi's hands moved quickly, chopping beef and searing it on the grill. I watched her hand maneuver the large metal spatula with practiced agility. She handed it off to me and I proved my lack of coordination quite handily. Sunmi found it entertaining and amusingly grabbed my hand every once in a while to steer it toward beef that might otherwise burn. My college degree was useless compared to her experience. It was refreshing to be taught something new and to have a teacher so enthralled with the experience.
We transferred the first batch of meat to a large metal pot and sent it off to someone else for sauce and seasoning prep.
"You single?" Sunmi asked. There was a twinkle in her eye and I couldn't help blushing. The question came out of nowhere. I mumbled, trying to come up with an answer that wouldn't scar the rapport we had. I could think of nothing that would not come out insulting. I whispered some truth for both our sakes.
"My wife just passed away." It was quite enough to remain private. Sunmi nodded slowly and leaned into me compassionately.
"I'm sorry," Sunmi whispered back. I wasn't sure if she was sorry about my wife or the fact she flirted.
"Thanks."
"We have three more pots to fill," Sunmi said, returning to the job at hand. I think she saw my need for manual labor. When I returned with more meat, there were two spatulas at the grill. We worked in tandem with the next three batches. She didn't flirt anymore, but we bonded over the searing meat. She started humming 'Amazing Grace' as we cooked. I joined in after a few moments. Sunmi smiled at me and I realized she was humming for Soojoo. I was touched that she understood, although she had never met my wife.
I turned to hand off the second pot of cooked meat to the next station. I caught Jennie staring at me. She clumsily went back to her paperwork. I wondered if she had heard my confession. I hoped she hadn't. I only told Sunmi to spare her feelings, and mine.
If you do prep, you get to eat first. It was a wonderful rule that my growling stomach appreciated immensely. I had been smelling food all day, and had had nothing but water. I was getting used to eating only once a day, but it's tougher when watching it being prepared. There was no cheating or snacking in Jennie's kitchen. I even had to wait for 'Sugar Magnolia.'
Luckily, Lisa was near the front of the line. I waited until she sat down before I started eating. It wasn't so much manners as it was a show of friendship. I liked her liking me without the need for my past. I loved feeding off her lazy enthusiasm for life. It was refreshing. Lisa lamented about the desert. She hated jello day and passed on her wiggly lemon chunk to me. I like jello. The mix of coolness and sweetness always seemed to please my tongue. Soojoo used to make triple-layered jello concoctions for me, mixing flavors that should never go together. She never found a combination I wouldn't eat.
"Good evening, Lisa." Jennie had snuck up on us in the middle of our desert discussion. Lisa nodded with mouth full of food. She leaned down and whispered in her ear. She nodded again. Jennie placed a plastic wrapped brownie on Lisa's tray. Lisa smiled, showing all her awful teeth.
