Page 60 of Big Island Sunrise
Walking down the line, she challenged herself to buy something from each stall. A bag of macnuts here, some fresh cilantro there, a small kabocha squash. Kai perked up when she bought him a tiny container of chocolate ice cream, and they returned their empty plastic cup to the orange juice stand, which collected and washed them each week to reuse the next.
“Can we get shave ice?” Kai asked as he scraped the last bits of chocolate from the bottom of the container.
“Sure. Why not?”
She was rewarded with a grin, and they went to see Lani.
“Kai!” Kekoa greeted him. “Howzit?”
Kai scowled and turned away. Kekoa looked puzzled, but a moment later his attention was diverted to a customer. Lani stepped up and smiled at them.
“What’ll it be?”
“Lemonade,” Kai said.
“Excellent choice. I made the lemon syrup myself. Emma?”
“I’ll have the same.”
Eating their shave ice, they ambled towards the end of the line to see the stands they had yet to visit.
At the truck that sold pasture raised chicken and farm fresh eggs, she saw a familiar face. She couldn’t remember his name, but she recognized him from her summers on island with Adam. He was just an acquaintance, a friend of a friend of a friend, a surfer who frequented Adam’s favorite spots. Her first impulse was to turn and run, but she stood steady.
One thing from every stand.
She braced herself and stepped up to the window.
“Hey, Emma! Long time no see! How you been?”
“I’m doing all right. How are you?”
“Just another day in paradise. This your son?”
“Yes, this is Kai.”
“Good name. Nice to meet you, little braddah. You look just like your dad.”
Kai scowled and stomped out of sight, just around the corner and into the shade of the truck, where the man couldn’t see him from his window. Unfazed, the man grinned and took her order.
“So how long are you here?” he asked as he rang her up.
“I’m not sure yet. Here for a while.”
“That’s great! Tell Adam I said howzit. I haven’t seen him for years. Hopefully we’ll see him down in the surf.”
She was still for a minute, hesitant to correct him. For a long moment she thought that she would let it be, that beautiful thought that Adam would show up in the lineup some sunny day.
Then she thought of coming to the farmers market next week and having this friendly stranger call out and ask after her husband.
And the week after that.
And the week after that.
As if she needed one more reason to act like a hermit.
“He died,” she said softly as she accepted the chicken she had purchased. “A few months ago.”
The man put his hand over hers, and it caught her off guard. She was surprised by how much that small gesture of compassion touched her. This island loved Adam nearly as much as she did.
