One of the girls in our program, Mercy, recently lost her mother. It happened quickly – her mother woke up in the middle of the night with stomach pains, and then passed away the following morning. It was a stark reminder how very quickly illness can come and take away loved ones.
Rachel, who is now Theresa’s official assistant, alerted Theresa about Mercy’s mother’s passing. And the entire cooperative rallied around comforting Mercy, working on funeral arrangements, and supporting the family.
Mercy’s mother was the sole breadwinner of the family. Mercy’s aunts are part of the family but one of them is very young and the other has a disability. Mercy’s grandmother, who came to the funeral, said she would move in to assist the family. However, being elderly, she asked for support and this amazing community kicked into high gear!
- Mealie meal will be provided to the family each month.
- The young aunt will join the nutrition program and eat at the Living Compassion property.
- When the grandmother needs to farm her land during the rainy season, the team will keep an eye on the family.
- The cooperative will provide a loan to the grandmother to help her start a business.
It is a beautiful reminder that in the hardest of times, when ego-centric karmic conditioning would try to convince us we are alone and how hard it will be, the power of community, of Sangha, shatters that illusion.
Gasshō,
Sreedevi