I run fast to get back to my grandfather.
Sirens blare, and lots of people are on the street.
When there’s an earthquake, we’re supposed
to stand in a doorway, wait for the shaking to stop.
Then we go outside and stand in the open,
see if others need help.
It seems like everyone’s okay,
it was short, and people are used
to earthquakes around here.
Most of Main Street seems fine, too.
When I get to the shop,
my grandfather is helping Mrs. Li
because one of her tables
toppled over, and the fruit
rolls like marbles in the street.
We get everything arranged,
apples with apples,
persimmons and squash,
and even a few pumpkins
like fat guardians at the edge of her table.
Mrs. Li laughs, and she hugs my grandfather.
It seems like they make each other happy.
He’s always there when she needs something.
She makes him soup every single day.
They’ve been friends since they got here.
Even on the ship,
when things weren’t so nice
and they didn’t know if
they would even be allowed to stay,
Mrs. Li and my grandmother
tended the kids who were sick
and made sure that everyone had enough food.
It helps, he says, to go through life together,
especially since my grandmother is gone.
Mrs. Li asks me if I will do a fast delivery for her.
I look at my grandfather and he nods.
She fills a paper sack with leafy greens,
and then, in another, she puts giant
purple yams! They’re heavy,
so I put the bags inside my backpack.
Go to 1401 Forest Road, she says.
If nobody’s home, leave it on the steps.
They work in the city, and sometimes they don’t answer.
Forest Road is far. Past the park.
So I go as fast as I can.