My family owns a diner. It is in Harlem, New York. Our diner’s name is For Your Soul. Our diner serves soul food.

Mom says soul food is good for the soul. That means it makes you feel good. If you feel sad, eating soul food will make you feel better. Dad says this is because soul food is made with love.

One day a man comes to the diner. The man is quiet. The man looks sad. The man sits at the counter.

“What will you have,” I ask him.

“What is good?” He asks.
 

“Everything!” I say.

“I never had soul food before,” he says.

“Did you hear that, Mom?” I ask loudly. So Mom can hear me in the kitchen.

“Oh, boy. You are in for a treat!” Mom says. “I’ll bring you an order of New Soul. It is for folks like you. Folks who never tried soul food.”

The man agrees. I watch him sit and wait quietly. Then he sees Mom. The man’s his eyes grow wide.

Mom brings him lots of plates full of food. There is fried fish. There is fried chicken. There is mac and cheese. There are grits. There are collard greens. There are biscuits. There are black-eyed peas. There is sweet potato pie.

The man starts to eat. After a while, the man starts to smile. Soon after, the man starts to talk to the people sitting next to him at the counter. The man starts to look happy. The more he eats the happier he looks.

“I feel so much better than before,” the man says. “Is this food magic?”

“No,” says Mom.

“It is made with love,” I say.

“Love is good for the soul,” says Mom.