A Place at the Table

The girls panic as they realize they forgot to clean the machine after meticulously cleaning the rest of the family and consumer sciences classroom. Elizabeth believes they will be fine because Mrs. Kluckowski will not blame them; Sara is less convinced. Though everyone loves their ice cream and halwa combination dessert, neither girl can enjoy the victory. Sara asks to leave early because she is tired of coping with the anger and stress.

Sara avoids acknowledging Elizabeth as much as possible at school on Monday. During lunch, the girls argue about whether it is better to pretend everything will end well; Sara leaves because she feels sick. The school day proceeds as usual until the final period. Sara’s teacher receives a phone call saying the principal wants Sara at the office. Mrs. Hameed, Mrs. Kluckowski, and the rest of the cooking club students are there. Mrs. Kluckowski wants to know who used her ice cream machine without permission; Mrs. Hameed claims no knowledge of who did and asks the student(s) who did to confess. Nobody steps forward. Sara feels awful because she believes Elizabeth is just like Maddy, Maddy’s parents, and Mrs. Kluckowski, who all look for reasons to send non-white people away.