Free The Clarkl Soup Kitchens by Mary Carmen

few minutes of the arrival of the merchant, the Reverend Walters appeared and poked his head into the cabin.
    “How wonderful you have found some furnishings,” he cried. “I think you will be much happier here with these beautiful things.”
    He clasped his hands to his face when he saw the finished electrified floor. He took off his shoes and felt the warmth come up from the tiles.
    The merchant showed both of us how to regulate the heat from the tiles by turning a dial. It reminded me of a rheostat, except that it had different symbols for high and low.
    The kitchen staff arrived next, with the choir in tow. Many words were said in admiration of the new items, and nobody asked me to feel guilty for spending so much.
    March 21, 2144 – The merchant returned just as the star came up over the horizon today. He had a crew of six, and they set about with the interior and exterior painting.
    It is hard to make a silk purse out of a sow’s ear, but that crew did as near as dammit. The exterior was painted a nice olive green with gold trim, and the interior was painted a warm, light beige with olive green trim.
    I took pictures of the crew and the merchant, standing with the Reverend Walters on the stoop of my cabin. The pictures showed the gold door and the paint-splattered Clarklians. The merchant stood proudly in the center.
    Just as everything was being replaced inside the cabin, the merchant and two crew members brought in a small wooden desk, certainly new but made to look like one in the Queen Anne style. A small armchair also was brought in, “just to see how they look.”
    The card table and the folding chairs were quickly taken to the back of the closet. While I was considering the desk and the chair, the merchant brought in several framed botanicals and had various workers hold them up over the bed and over the desk.
    I authorized another large expenditure, and the merchant and its crew took their leave.
    In all, I spent over $50,000 for this upgrade to property I will never own.
    The merchant assured me the tiles will keep the place warm every day, even when the temperature is below zero Fahrenheit. The new bedspread keeps me warm in bed, too.
    The new desk and chair are very comfortable, and I believe I will be happy here for the rest of the two years I will be on Clarkl.
    March 22, 2144 – I kept to my little cabin today, except for the services and my meals.
    How nice everything looks! The bed is still quite small, about the size of a long single bed at home, but it is very comfortable. The merchant assured me it was the brand used at the only hotel on Clarkl that caters to Americans.
    The Reverend Walters has become somewhat morose about the lack of attendance in the dining room and at our services.
    The only way we are able to find Clarklians to attend the services is to direct them to the sanctuary after the meals. One person stands at the dining room’s exit and points toward the sanctuary, and another stands by the door of the sanctuary and points toward the benches inside.
    When the temperature is extremely cold, as it is from time to time, the locals are willing to go into the warm sanctuary. On other days, they are more likely to just get back into their little vehicles and go back to their other amusements.
    I understand that few Clarklians spend their time in those little houses. Instead, they gather in the streets or in the several public meeting halls to talk or play games.
    Our clientele is unlikely to have extra money to spend on entertainment. It seems to me the music they hear at our services is their only entertainment.
    I am not certain how the government supports these many entities who do not work, but my farmhand friend believes each Clarklian receives the house, electricity and water for the house, and a very small allowance. Our dining room is available for those who are unable to afford food.
    Most of our clientele drive to our compound for meals. Some, of course, walk, but the usual