By Bill King
In this modern age, the question most often asked at mealtime may be, “Where do you want to eat?” Even with all the multitude of places in Marietta, Georgia, to dine out, that is a question no one needs to ask Mrs. Eloise Tinker. If you do, and it is breakfast time, you’ll get the same answer every day. Mrs. Eloise has breakfast at Waffle House. I’m not talking about when she goes out to breakfast. She goes out to breakfast every morning, and every morning she goes to the same place. Mrs. Eloise is 91 years old, and for the last ten years, she has had breakfast at Waffle House. She knows what she likes! Usually, she goes to the one on Barrett Parkway, but one of her favorite waitresses moved to the one on Canton Highway, so she dines there now, but only occasionally. She drove herself each morning until about three years ago. Her twin daughters, Donna and Debra, decided she probably didn’t need to drive anymore, so now they take her. An old television show used to sing, “You want to go where everybody knows your name.” Everybody at Waffle House knows her name, but when she walks in the door they all holler, “Hey Granny.” They even buy her cakes and flowers on her birthday.
So, what does Mrs. Tinker eat at Waffle House? The same thing every morning. Obviously, the servers there all know her order. Her drink is often on the table before she sits down. She orders a single scrambled egg, one slice of dry raisin toast, extra-crispy bacon, or occasionally sausage, coffee, and a glass of water. When she orders her coffee, she does her fingers to show about an inch and says, “And add about this much hot water.” Before she leaves, she orders a Diet Coke with a splash of vanilla and a coffee, to go. She knows exactly how much her ticket is going to be, and if it varies any, she gets a little rattled.
Back when she was still driving herself, she tripped over a yellow parking stop. She faceplanted on the pavement! She broke her nose, and the next morning, she had two blackened eyes. She got up by herself and walked back in. Everybody rushed to aid her, and someone called 911. She was rushed to the E.R. and underwent surgery to repair her broken nose. The very next morning, guess where she had breakfast…broken nose, black eyes, eggs, and all! The female manager gave her a pair of sunglasses to hide her eyes.
During Covid, her daughters wouldn’t let her go to Waffle House for fear she would catch it. They got orders to go for her, but she said it wasn’t the same as going there. She didn’t have the servers and cooks that made her feel so special. Then, of all things, her Waffle House closed for remodeling. When they finally had the grand reopening, guess who cut the large red ribbon with a huge pair of scissors that belonged to her late husband.
Some 35 years ago, I had the privilege of serving as the Tinker’s pastor. Both of them were the real deal and deeply committed to their church, even more so than she is to her favorite breakfast place. While her daughters may be so tired of going to Waffle House, they still go and drive their mother every day for her visit. Why do they? Love! The same reason our loved ones do the good things they do for us. The same reason God does all the things he does for us!
