The Cancer Patient's Mite

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You’ve probably seen this picture before, but did you know that the woman in the photograph is named Florence Owens Thompson? She was thirty-two at the time Dorthea Lange took her picture, and a widowed mother of seven children. Thompson told Lange that she had been living on frozen vegetables from the surrounding fields, as well as birds that her children had killed.

Dorthea Lange’s portrait of the “Migrant Mother” has come to be one of the most iconic images in American history. It helped galvanize the American public during the Great Depression. It drew people together, and is part of the reason why Americans came to remember that era as a time when the community gathered to help those in need.

Few people had much. But what they had, they shared.

For most living Americans, the Great Depression is just a story out of the distant past. But the massive unemployment brought about by our current crisis has many people wondering if we could once again be on that path. Many economists argue that we’re a different country now, and that because of these differences we’re not likely to return to that level of poverty.

But one of the ways in which our world is different is that it is now much, much smaller. Information technology has shrunk the world to our fingertips on our phones, to the point that it’s not just an impoverished American mother we can see (and there are still many), but also impoverished mothers all over the world.

It can be overwhelming.

But if we look closely, we will see that it’s not just tales of deprivation coming in from around the globe. Earlier this month we brought you the story of the creative response of some of the Shipibo-Conibo people of Peru—how they’ve worked with ARIAP (Asociacion Raíces Indiígenas Amazónicas Peruanas / Association of Peruvian Amazon Indigenous Roots) to create an informative series of videos to help raise awareness about the coronavirus.

ARIAP President Jeiser Suarez has been keeping us updated on the situation among the Shipibo-Conibo people, and it is not good. Sickness is rampant in this vulnerable community, and resources for the testing and treatment of the disease are extremely limited.

ARIAP and other organizations have been rising to the challenge.

Jeiser relates how he received word from the sister of a friend who died a couple of weeks ago of cancer. The sister said she had a letter for Jeiser from his friend. In this letter, Jeiser’s friend spoke warmly of their relationship. He had heard of the plight of the Shipibo-Conibo people and although he had few resources himself, he included in the letter a little money for Jeiser to use as he saw fit.  

Jeiser immediately called up other members of ARIAP. Together they purchased food and distributed it among some of the neediest members of their community.

There is a story in the Bible colloquially referred to as “The Widow’s Mite.” It tells of a woman who lived in desperate poverty, but nonetheless shared what little she had. In the story, Jesus points out that this woman has in essence given much more than any of the wealthy, publicly-lauded philanthropists of the day. The story is a rebuke to our current values, but the woman in it also provides a clarion call to action—and she exits today around the world.

Deprivation is real among the Shipibo-Conibo people, and this crisis is expanding that deprivation far beyond anything most Americans have ever had to face. Sadly, Jeiser’s own mother died last week of COVID-19. He and several of his siblings are also battling the disease and are, we pray, recovering. But Jeiser’s stories have inspired us and reminded us that we have a great capacity for generosity and community-care, no matter what our situation.

If you are able and would like to help support community-based organizations like ARIAP in their COVID-19 related efforts, please donate to our General Fund here.  All new donations sent to our General Fund between June 1 and June 30, 2020 will be used to support such efforts.