by Rick Tardiff
The attendant at the drive thru is a teenage schoolgirl with a big smile and a warm welcome, sporting the latest fashions from GAP, Hollister, Abercrombie, or American Eagle. She is impeccably turned out, not a hair out of place. You order a coffee, medium with cream and one sugar then decide to go for a bagel with egg and bacon. The young server chats away about the weather as she gets your order ready. She may be thinking about what she is going to buy at the mall when she gets off shift, perhaps a boyfriend will pick her up and they will go to the movies with friends. This is the early shift and she shivers as the cold Maine air blows into the serving window. She straightens her back and takes the next order with the same upbeat energetic manner.
As you pull out to negotiate the traffic you are unaware that you have just come face to face with homelessness. The young lady who served you is homeless. Left to find her way on the streets since the ripe old age of 15.
