She hesitated.
Then nodded.
At one o’clock, I carried two coffees to the corner table where Pat sat alone.
For a while, we said nothing.
Then she spoke.
“Renee doesn’t know I came here.”
I waited.
“She thinks I’m cooking Christmas dinner at home.”
Pat looked down at her hands.
“But I couldn’t afford the groceries. I came here hoping to receive one of the holiday food boxes.”
My heart ached for her.
She explained that she’d been struggling financially for months.
She’d told Renee she had savings.
She’d also told her the landlord was willing to wait for overdue rent.
Neither statement was true.
“I didn’t want my daughter worrying about me,” Pat whispered.
I reached across the table and took her hand.
“Pat, you don’t have to be embarrassed.”
Her eyes filled with tears.
Then she told me something extraordinary.
