At Dewey's

I lie back on my couch seat in the café. Sound and movement fill the room as everyone goes about their own pressing matters, so we’re aware of our closeness yet also oblivious to each other. I revel at Solomon’s calm demeanor, how he appreciates this moment we’ve found to spend together without our usual four, five, sometimes six-piece family set. He sips my drink and complains about the sweet froth coating, “the top.” “That’s my favorite part!” I explain. He returns his attention to his favorite: tuna croissanwich and coconut water, the only thing he ever orders. The smelly popcorn burn wafts through in the air and with it all my week’s frustrations melt into one deep breath and a dramatic sigh.

“Solomon," I say, "let’s do this again.”
 
“Mommy, I was thinking that too.”

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Ginaya Willoughby wrote this memory piece at a Who We Are, Where We Live workshop at Rice Library, where she is a librarian. She's worked there for over five years and “loves the influence that the library has on people’s lives to learn, grow and connect.”