Showing up in All Weather

“You show up because they show up. If they show up, I show up.” Rain or shine, sweltering heat or below freezing, Merdalf has been playing his guitar at the 32nd Street Farmers Market for over thirteen years. Even on this rainy Saturday in March 2024, when shoppers are rushing to buy their groceries and spending less time lingering, he’s here—poncho, rain guitar, and his rainbow umbrella hat.

“If I gotta be out here, this can be out here,” he says, patting his guitar. He covers it in tape to prevent it from water damage. “It sounds like crap,” he admits. He reserves his good guitar for the fairer weather. “I’ve had guitars break here. I had a Taylor before that cracked because it was so cold here,” he says. Miraculously, his fingers didn’t crack. “When I'm playing, I'm getting down for real. I don't feel pain. And right now, I'm feeling pretty good even out in the rain.” 

For Merdalf, the market provides love, connectedness, and ego. He smiles at me. “You’re doing my favorite thing,” he says. “What’s that?” I ask. “Allow me to run my mouth and talk about me.” As far as reputation goes, Merdalf has carved out a place for himself at the 32nd Street Farmers Market. In 2022, Baltimore Magazine published a feature article about him: “The Street Musician Known as Merdalf is the Mayor of 32nd Street.” It is a fitting title, given that it was the people who vouched for him to be part of the market. When Merdalf first started, he was only allowed to play on the sidewalk because he didn’t have a City busker’s permit. “I call it paying dues,” he says. If you want something bad enough, you keep showing up.  

“I'm gonna tell you something,” he says. “All you gotta do is stand on the corner over there every single day and wave at people as they go by. And you know what happens? You start seeing the same people. You start getting a little communication. It doesn't have to be verbal, just be in the eye. And they'll miss you if you're gone.” Eventually people got used to seeing Merdalf. “Finally, the people said, ‘Let this man in here.’”

After all these years, Merdalf identifies more with the vendors than the musicians, distinguishing himself as a stable presence at the market. From his station next to Zeke’s Coffee, Merdalf has seen children grow up and go on to have children of their own. It’s a bearing witness to the passage of time. 

Merdalf’s story of stitching himself into the 32nd Street Farmers Market community reminds me of a quote by adrienne maree brown, whose book Emergent Strategy has revolutionized the way I talk about community. “Interdependence is iterative” she writes, and, “it’s a series of small repetitive motions.” Building community is “a series of small, repetitive motions.” It requires showing up, again and again. 

Each of us may show up at the Market for different reasons–for groceries, business, routine, health, connecting with friends and family. What matters is that we keep showing up—investing in the work, people, and home that we care about.

—Megan Lovely. This essay is an excerpt from her forthcoming memoir, Parking Lot Magic, to be released in Fall 2025. Click below to find out more about the book and to meet other community characters featured in the book.

                                                                                                          Photograph by Michael Caballes