I roll over at 8:00 am.
The light gently passes through the curtains.
I consider how I feel:
Rested, ready to face the day.
I have been sick this week,
Lying like a broken man,
A helpless baby on the couch.
My wife’s generous care comforts me.
After reflecting a moment
I reach for my phone.
Shielding my eyes from the bright light
I check my notifications.
“Eri* came home at 4:00 am,”
Reads the notification on my screen.
I rub my eyes as the sleep falls away.
I rise and prepare for what today brings.
After a few hours I walk into the house
The house where happiness and sadness
Live in equal measure.
“Is Eri sleeping?” I ask the volunteer there.
“Yes,” she replies, amid her sweeping of the floor,
“She’s been in bed since 4:00.”
I settle in for the day,
Moving laundry to the dryer, washing dishes, cleaning.
After a few hours, Eri descends the stairs.
She’s still wearing makeup.
Her lipstick and eyeliner are smudged.
“Good morning,” she says, in heavily accented English.
“Good morning,” I reply,
“Are you ok?”
“No,” she tells me,
“I am very tired.”
She tells me the story
Of hiding in the forest,
Sleeping in the cold.
Running from the authorities.
I can almost hear
The tear gas canisters explode,
The shouts of the people
The crying of mothers and children.
This was not her first attempt
To cross the English Channel
To new life in the UK,
Where she would be safe from harm.
“Joseph,” she says,
“Do we have any lemons?”
“Yes,” I reply,
And I walk down the concrete steps to the basement.
Coming back into the kitchen,
I hand Eri the lemon.
“Do you want tea?” She asks.
“Tea will help your throat and your nose.”
She can tell I’m still sick.
This woman with smudged makeup
In a bathrobe, dizzy from fatigue,
Is worried about me.
“No, thank you,” I say.
“You must drink tea,” she commands.
With no choice, chastised, like a puppy,
I sit at the table, my tail between my legs.
She prepares the tea.
She sets it beside me.
“Thank you, my friend,” I tell her.
“I will drink my tea.”
Lightly I sip the steaming beverage,
Letting the sourness touch my tongue.
The warmth of the tea and Eri’s smile
Warm me in body and spirit.
*Not her real name