Working In the Kitchen...
Oct. 17th, 2007 10:54 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
liralenWorked in the OUR Center kitchen this morning and early afternoon and my back and legs are telling me that they didn't like what I did, not one bit.
But I did. Oddly enough. I did. I don't usually work in the kitchen not because the work is hard and menial but because I have to interact with people all the time. Mostly it's the kitchen staff, but when I do it on the weekdays, I serve the food as well.
It is oddly humbling to look the homeless in the eye. Humbling to have them thank me for food that I made for them, and to say, "You're very welcome." Really. You are. You have no idea how much, either. Sigh.
There was a set of about half a dozen young men, probably in their early twenties, all rosy from working out in the cold. They were laughing about something and one of them was looking at another and I blinked because he was so beautiful. They could have been from some manga like Bananafish. And all of them were hungry for the beef pot pie Rick had scrambled to make from pre-packed beef stew and Bisquick.
The weather has gone cold. Hearty, heavy, hot food really hits the spot for these guys. We went through only two of five pans of the stuff for the first serving, but when seconds were called out, the other three pans went so fast, my right arm was sore from dishing the stuff out. The biscuit was very thick on the gravy, so I had to dig a bit to balance out the meat and bread. My servings were a bit huge, but I managed to hit is just right, and served the very last serving to the very last person right at 1 pm.
One of the guys that has been a client for some time, but has gotten a steady job and worked his way out of his hole now volunteers on a regular basis. His farewell to folks was, "Stay warm." I suspect he really knows what he's talking about. That struck me. So I found myself wishing that for folks as they left.
The volunteers had to scrounge up some chicken noodle soup from yesterday for our lunch. But John had taken me to Lucille's for breakfast, so we were well fueled for the whole lunch time, and even afterwards we went to King Soopers to get our own groceries. So that worked out well.
So I'm sore, but I'm happier at heart than I have been for a while.
But I did. Oddly enough. I did. I don't usually work in the kitchen not because the work is hard and menial but because I have to interact with people all the time. Mostly it's the kitchen staff, but when I do it on the weekdays, I serve the food as well.
It is oddly humbling to look the homeless in the eye. Humbling to have them thank me for food that I made for them, and to say, "You're very welcome." Really. You are. You have no idea how much, either. Sigh.
There was a set of about half a dozen young men, probably in their early twenties, all rosy from working out in the cold. They were laughing about something and one of them was looking at another and I blinked because he was so beautiful. They could have been from some manga like Bananafish. And all of them were hungry for the beef pot pie Rick had scrambled to make from pre-packed beef stew and Bisquick.
The weather has gone cold. Hearty, heavy, hot food really hits the spot for these guys. We went through only two of five pans of the stuff for the first serving, but when seconds were called out, the other three pans went so fast, my right arm was sore from dishing the stuff out. The biscuit was very thick on the gravy, so I had to dig a bit to balance out the meat and bread. My servings were a bit huge, but I managed to hit is just right, and served the very last serving to the very last person right at 1 pm.
One of the guys that has been a client for some time, but has gotten a steady job and worked his way out of his hole now volunteers on a regular basis. His farewell to folks was, "Stay warm." I suspect he really knows what he's talking about. That struck me. So I found myself wishing that for folks as they left.
The volunteers had to scrounge up some chicken noodle soup from yesterday for our lunch. But John had taken me to Lucille's for breakfast, so we were well fueled for the whole lunch time, and even afterwards we went to King Soopers to get our own groceries. So that worked out well.
So I'm sore, but I'm happier at heart than I have been for a while.
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2007-10-18 01:25 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-10-19 04:51 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-10-21 04:52 am (UTC)Glad that it was a good thing for you in spite of the physical pain
*hugs*
no subject
Date: 2007-10-22 04:45 am (UTC)It was a very good thing, even including the pain in some sense...
And, yes, my heart definitely needed it.