We were mystified.

One minute, Dr. Grace Lim is delivering her weekly health talk on Wednesday to the nearly 120 guests of So Others May Eat in the Parroquia de San Miguel Arcangel courtyard. 

“Many of you only have each other,” she reminds the elderly San Miguelians, all over the age of 65. “You need to watch out for each other.”

A frail elderly woman reaches up and asks for the microphone and Dr. Lim hands it to her.

She turns to face the 20 or so volunteers waiting to serve the hot lunch to all the guests. “You are the reason that I come here every week,” she says. “Gracias. Gracias.”

The other guests applaud.

The volunteers applaud back. Some make heart signs with their hands.

The woman passes the microphone to her friend. “I pray for each and every one of you every day,” she says softly.”Gracias.”

More applause. And more guests asking for the microphone to say similar things.

Earlier, some of the volunteers (who have been coming on Wednesdays for as many as 15 years) were reflecting on how much they get from serving hot meals once a week. It is the smiles and shy waves as the guests walk in around 12:30 p.m. from Mass next door. The handshakes. The cheerful greetings. And again, the smiles. So many warm smiles.

Every person there feels the joy this brings to us.

Don’t they know that they are the reason we show up? That we are the ones who are so grateful for this chance?

It was quite a mutual appreciation moment that went on for several minutes and I know that I wasn’t the only one getting a bit choked up.

You see these same faces week after week and soon you begin to recognize and greet each other on the street. You notice when a guest doesn’t show up and an alert is sent up. Somebody will check up.

Nourishment isn’t just about food. Feeling like you belong – somewhere, with someone, to something – enriches the spirit as much as a warm plate of chicken and mole fills the stomach.

Speaking of which, we had 120 hot lunches, fruit, salads, beverages and desserts to serve as quickly as possible. As soon as the ladies recited the traditional prayers and songs of thanksgiving and gratitude.

Many of our guests will only eat some of the lunch, and then pack the rest away in containers. It is their only warm meal of the week and they know how to stretch it into two and three more. Any leftovers are packaged and distributed to the guests as they leave. 

Everything goes to someone.

Every Wednesday, as I walk away from the Parroquia courtyard, it feels as though I am floating just above the cobblestones. Who knew that doing so little for so many could make you feel so good?

And yet, there is so much more to S.O.M.E than serving up smiles and a hot meal. The day starts for some at 9 a.m. So much work that goes into purchasing supplies every week, paying for all that, cooking the food, setting up, breaking down, live music, and so, so much more.

So Others May Eat makes this day an event. Many of the guests have been sharing lunch with their same friends at the same table for years. There is often a trio performing popular songs and at the end of the meal, many guest clamber up onstage with Percussion instruments and sing a joyful song of thanks.

Dr. Grace Lim delivers a short talk before lunch, often on a current topic like avoiding the flu and dengue fever and even combating cockroaches.

While lunch is being served, Dr. Grace goes from table-to-table, checking on the health and well-being of each guest. In some cases, she will dispense medicines on the spot or write prescriptions. Non-medical problems are also tended to.

The staff celebrates birthdays, sometimes with a gift and a cake. On Mother’s Day, every woman receives a gift bag. At Christmas, too. Last year, with the city, warm blankets were handed out to all.

All of these expenses, as well as the food and service staff, are factored into a budget that clocks in at $120 pesos per person per meal.

And where does that come from? You may have heard the story. Dr. Lim’s mother and father — Antonette and Joe Lim — came to San Miguel in the mid-1980s and opened up the massage and care center called The Spa. Shortly after, they began So Others May Eat and diverted 20 percent of The Spa’s revenue into feeding the elderly.

Twenty percent.

To this day, The Spa Wellness Center has been the main source of support for So Others May Eat.

Dr Lim and her husband were both physicians in Mexico City when her parents passed away. They relocated their practices, resettled in San Miguel and made sure The Spa and So Others May Eat kept the door open. They both still give up their afternoon practices at MAC Hospital to feed the elderly on Wednesdays.

Not surprisingly, The Spa Wellness Center took a big hit during COVID. And recently, the business was moved to a new location, Calle Santo Domingo #12. That was expensive.

Other donors have come and gone, but S.O.M.E funding but it isn’t what it was pre-COVID. They could use our help. Imagine, just $500 pesos could provide a full stomach and a smile for an elderly San Miguelian for a whole month.

There has been some thought to asking people to sponsor a specific item. The list of what’s needed weekly includes: milk, juice, rolls, tortillas, ham and/or chicken, cheese, cream, rice and/or pasta, beans, vegetables, fruit, cooking oil, cooking condiments, napkins, cleaning products and gas to operate the stove-tops and ovens.

Somebody out there wants to sponsor a month’s worth of broccoli. I just know it!

There are also payments made to locals who set up, cook, wash all the dishes and more.

For one meal a week, there is a lot going on!

If you’d like to help, get in touch with So Others May Eat through its website. There is also a Paypal button on the page. Makes it so simple!

See how you can help. Please.

A version of this story was published in the current issue of the monthly newspaper, San Miguel Insider.