For many years, before I gave birth to Connor, I volunteered at Miriam's Kitchen. In fact, I pre-dated the awesome chef that took over the place about 10 years ago. But then I was a nursing mom, who couldn't reliably get to the kitchen on time, and so I continued making monthly donations via the Breakfast Club (now the MK Club) but didn't find myself in the kitchen, save for a few hours here and there to work on computer stuff.
Last Monday, I went back to Miriam's to volunteer. After a five year hiatus, I noticed a few things.
1. I recognize a shocking number of people. Chronic homelessness is a problem in DC, and while it was good to see some friendly faces from the past, I was also deeply saddened that these men and women continue to struggle.
2. Time is relative. Before I had kids, I used to think it took heroic efforts to get to the kitchen on time. As I was preparing to leave my house on Monday, I asked myself "was I supposed to be there at 5:30? Because arriving at 6:00 just doesn't seem early enough". I arrived at the right time, it just doesn't seem ridiculously early any more.
Elaine
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