Member-only story

The Coffee Shop

Dr. Mercedes Samudio, DSW, LCSW
Café Ruthelen
Published in
5 min readNov 20, 2024

Welcome to Café Ruthelen. I am The Barista, and I’ll guide you through these amazing stories. Each story came to me from a traveler lost on their journey. They come to the café as a last stop before they move on to the next part. Some are lost, some are passing through, and even less know of this place and stumbled upon it on their way forward.

Nonetheless, as they arrive, I greet them and offer them a table, a pen, paper, and an opportunity to pour something out of them. Whatever it is. A diary entry. A short story. One chapter in a larger story. And when they’re done, my only request: they leave it with me. It’s the fee for passing through.

So, enjoy these stories…

…this one comes from a sullen young woman, a traveler who believed she had stumbled upon a moment as flawless as a movie meet-cute, only to find herself wrapped up in the reality of missed chances and fleeting glances. She wrote this, perhaps hoping the words could capture what the moment could not…

The Coffee Shop

I remember the first time I saw this man. This strong man walked into the coffee shop, knowing that he had a mission. Knowing that he was someone. Not letting the long line deter him from his thoughts. Standing there, brooding at the coffee menu as if it were a great philosophy to figure out.

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Café Ruthelen
Café Ruthelen

Published in Café Ruthelen

Stories from a rift in time and space that allowed a cafe to appear. Hosted by The Barista, a multidimensional being who exists sole to capture stories from those who get lost and land in this pocket universe.

Dr. Mercedes Samudio, DSW, LCSW
Dr. Mercedes Samudio, DSW, LCSW

Written by Dr. Mercedes Samudio, DSW, LCSW

Clinician, Researcher, author of Shame Proof Parenting, AfroNerd, Hufflepuff, & MCU mythologist shifting the narrative for Black mental health

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