The Greasy Little Brown Bag
Chuck Williams of Mesa, AZ, USA
Open your ears to hear the pleading of mothers and fathers in all nations who desperately seek a future of hope for their children. Do not turn away from them. For in their welfare resides your welfare. -Doctrine and Covenants 161:3a
I had been placed in charge of the breakfast program at school. This predated the development of the federally funded lunch programs. Our funds were quite limited. The program was designed for low-income families who were having trouble feeding their children breakfast.
Jimmy was a little first grader who showed up early every morning for breakfast. He clutched in his hand a brown, greasy bag containing his lunch. I noted that, if we had donuts, he would save part of it for his lunch. Neighbors had called in several times to tell us they had observed a little boy going through the garbage and taking out scraps and putting them in his bag.
As the weather got colder, I found a warm jacket in our supply closet to put over his shirt, along with several pairs of socks. The nurse, after weighing the children, made a note that Jimmy was quite a bit underweight. It was determined that, perhaps we needed to call the mother in and talk about our concerns.
On the appointed day, the principal, nurse, social worker, and I gathered around a kidney-shaped table facing the mother who appeared to be between 18 and 20 years of age. Each took their turn expressing the concerns they had for Jimmy in a straightforward, factual manner. When each had completed their observation, the mother rose, looked us straight in the eye and said, “I have listened to you telling me I do not look after my son. Well, for your information, I work nights at McDonalds for $3.00 an hour, and many nights I sell my body on my way home so that I can pay the rent. I don’t have to take any more of your .” She turned and walked out of the room.
I have never felt as inept and disappointed with myself than I did then. I asked myself why could we not have come up with some positive ways of dealing with the problem. I made a commitment I would never let something like that happen again, and it never did.
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Spiritual Practice
Breathing God’s Compassion
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