The Grocery

The Grocery

...a place to ponder our existence.

Every week I go to the grocery.
Shopping is oftentimes mundane,
but at others it can be existential,
involving a trip to the pharmacy
or the search for wholesome
and palliative foods.

This morning at the grocery
I thought of my grandparents,
born early in the twentieth century
and passed away right before the next.
I then found myself wondering
what life was like for them at my age.

As I close my eyes
I can picture them standing
in an aisle labeled Humanity.
One of them picks up a colorful can,
squints to read the ingredients.
It's past the expiration date
and so they hurriedly put it back.

---

If people want to find me, they can.
They'll see a middle-aged woman
wandering around the grocery store,
looking to see what to buy for dinner.
~ S. E. Hinton