Lunch, ma'm?

Two weeks after the frame of the walls went up (see yesterday's Bare bones), the main room of our new office is starting to shape up—of course, it's now not just one room but several small rooms and one largish work area. I wanted to take a photo of the work in progress, and when I went in the room just before leaving yesterday, I had totally forgotten that it was noon and that the workers had settled down to have their lunch—on the floor, eating with their fingers from plastic bags. I politely asked them if I could take a picture anyway and they consented but averted their faces. Notice how they removed their slippers and put a sheet of paper on the newly-laid vinyl tiles to avoid staining them. And despite their meager fare, these men epitomize Filipino hospitality—the first thing I heard when I entered the room was, "Ma'm, kain po tayo" (Ma'm, let's eat). Of course, this same Filipino hospitality demands that the other person, if you notice that the food is not enough to share, politely decline by saying a plausible excuse like, "Thank you, but my husband is waiting for me at home." (However, if there's lots of food, you have to have some—even if you're full to bursting—or you'll end up insulting the person.)