Work

Chips and salsa.

Who could imagine that something so simple

Would attract so much attention?

Cada día

Hundreds of faces flood into the small space like

A roaring sea

One by one, group by group

Everyone quickly claims their seat in the bustling bar

And densely packed dining room

Hastening their pace to avoid patience

I try to keep up with them as best I can

Scrambling to take names and numbers

And estimating the expanse of time

Before they engulf

The flavorful plates crafted by the cooks

I steadily shape the serviettes with the silverware

Polishing, packing, and perfecting each set

Tremendous scoops of warm totopos are placed into baskets

And spicy salsas are served

To complement the saltiness

Waiters, hosts, bosses, and managers mingle

With the multitude of personas

But behind the barriers blocking the

Gazes of customers lies our own beehive

Every employee engulfs themselves in their work

Relaying requests, taking tickets, bringing bebidas, carrying comida

The restaurant may be a roaring sea,

But we are a tsunami of activity

Over the course of the night, genuine greetings and gracious goodbyes

Appear to appreciate every passing second

It is as if the wave of famished, familiar faces

Will never quite touch the shore

But as closing time looms,

The loads of people leave their delightfully lavish dishes

For a night that will soon lead to another ambitious day

The newly sequestered quietness is striking

The tide seems to have turned intangible

Now, workers welcome nightly normalities such as

Bussing booths, sweeping suelos, and neatly preparing for the next day

As final tasks are taken on, meaningful memories between amigos are created

And slowly but surely, the herd of hardworking empleados hastens home

“Buenas noches!”

So strange is the sudden sensation of the complete and utter

Silence.

-Harper Johnson