I order Taco Bell almost once a week.
There’s something comforting in
the same ingredients folded into
a tortilla, cheaply priced and flavored –
cheesy gordita crunches and
crunchwrap supremes and chalupas
and let’s not forget 5-layer burritos –
stacked in a paper bag for me to eat now
but also save for later. However,
this isn’t about Taco Bell, not really.
This is about comfort food,
the national Taco Tuesday
we’ve created, the way we devour and
reproduce each week a familiar menu
while the rest of the world is in turmoil,
our kitchens a small reprieve, a gentle
haven, an ample escape. No, this was
never about Taco Bell at all but rather
the way food communicates, whether
fast food or high scale, but that’s another
conversation in itself; nevertheless:
eat your tacos and greet the day with
the kind of excitement reserved for
friends and family, for that is what
the privilege of food provides, and
yes, it is such a privilege to eat, is it not?

Ashley Sapp resides in Columbia, South Carolina, with her husband and furbabies. She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in English from the University of South Carolina in 2010 and has written for various publications. Her work has previously appeared in Indie Chick, Tipsy Lit, and the Common Ground Review. She is a bibliophile who enjoys traveling, tattoos, and a good pun or two. Ashley has written two poetry collections: Wild Becomes You and Silence Is A Ballad. Follow her on Twitter @ashthesapp.