A Salvadoran couple enjoy the bean season and can be found on 23rd and Mission with fresh beans - shelled or on the branch - to sell.
It was not the first time she’d heard this debate. For the last two years, the Salvadoran couple has been selling beans in the Mission, beginning their weekend on Friday when they leave home near Modesto and drive 68 miles to Hayward to fill their truck. Another laborer harvests the beans in Santa Maria, a town just north of Santa Barbara.
They do this through the season that begins in July and ends sometime in October. Off-season, Molina returns to landscaping and construction; García Aleman says, “I become a housewife.” “I want to vote,” she says. In the meantime, she’s made a good life with Molina and the bean season has become part of that life.
You won’t find them at their corner this weekend, as García Aleman returned to El Salvador last Sunday night for a brief family visit. Earlier in the day, she pointed to her suitcase in the back of the truck. It’s stuffed with gifts. “Something for everyone,” she said.