The first snow fell on the day I became homeless

Dear Delyara, I have spent the day carrying two suitcases between places that do not want them. My landlord changed the locks after months of rent arrears. I knew the eviction was coming, but knowing did not make it less shocking to see my belongings on the pavement. I am fifty-two, employed, and homeless. Those facts do not seem like they should fit in one sentence. I work in payroll for a hospital. Tomorrow, I will process salaries for hundreds of people while wearing the same clothes and pretending I slept somewhere ordinary. Tonight, the shelter is full, so I am sitting in the twenty-four-hour section of a bus terminal. The first snow began an hour ago. Travellers keep coming inside shaking white from their coats, annoyed by delays, carrying keys to places waiting for them. One of my suitcases has a broken wheel, and every time I move it, the whole terminal hears. I have placed my employee badge on top so security will think I belong here for a reason. The snow looks beautiful through the glass. I am angry at it for choosing tonight to be beautiful.