Why He Does It Poem by Grant House

Happened last night

Met a woman at the one year anniversary
of Obama's election party at State & A
where some of the balloons
we brought the night before
for our election eve celebration
are still tied to the railing.

(I was re-elected to city council along with two like-minded candidates!)

They manage to stay afloat
buoyed up, no doubt,
by excesses of excitement and joy at our victory.

I mention to her that I am leaving for Solvang
for a Community Action Committee board meeting
where we work on addressing poverty in the county.

She tells me about this 96 year-old lady she visits
how special their time with one another is
how the lady brightens up
when the CAC van pulls up
with lunch from the senior nutrition program.

She wants me to know
how special that is for her each day,
how her friend sparkles,
what a difference it makes for her,
and, really, for both of them.

So I tell this story at the CAC meeting
and the Executive Director says
how wonderful it is that I shared that
because it is a perfect segue to Matt
(the fella I didn't know but shook hands with anyway as I came in)
because he was going to tell us
about the Senior Nutrition Program
and how they deliver over 600 lunches
to often lonely seniors daily.

I look at this guy Matt and he smiles at me as if to say,
you know that 96 year old lady
who sparkles when we bring lunch?
She is the reason I do this.
Thank you for making
what I am about to tell the members of the board
real for them.

Then he begins his presentation.

I mean, there's this moment,
as he starts to look away,
that I really get the guy.

I completely understand
why he does it.

And I realize how grateful I am
for having told the story.