She goes to the Mexican bakery
for the second time this week
to fill up a bag of pastries,
to grab her grape soda,
to say hello to the owners.
She visits the cats at the bookstore,
engaging them in small conversations,
and browses through books all about
bears and sharks and ancient traditions.
She makes sure to catch a glimpse
of the setting sun, and take a mental picture.
It starts to get dark, but her heart is too heavy,
she can't go home,
so she finds shelter at the library
and finds coloring pages to occupy her time.
Then she stops at the local gas station
where she also feels safe,
the people friendly and kind,
but she knows she must go home.
