As we drove down our street one day, we saw an elderly lady bent nearly 90 degrees at the waist, leaning on a stick and shuffling her bare feet in the filth of road as she walked toward downtown. We marveled at how she was still able to get around. We wondered where she lived and whether she had a family to take care of her.

A couple of weeks later, while visiting one of our prominent Muslim neighbors, the bent-over lady arrived at the house. We learned that her name is Amina, and she is also of Muslim faith. As Edie was talking with the Muslim women, she asked Amina why she walks around barefooted. Amina replied that she hasn’t worn shoes since she was a child because they hurt her feet. As Edie was thinking about her answer, the lady of the house spoke up and told Amina that Edie was offering to buy her a pair of shoes. Edie quickly learned a cultural lesson about inquiring into a person’s need or welfare publicly. It was assumed that she was going to buy shoes. But Amina said, “Don’t give me shoes, give me food.”

Later, Edie brought two full bags of food to Amina’s house, which turned out to be five houses down from ours. She lives alone in a one-room house made of reeds, mud, and second-hand metal roofing. She offered Edie her only chair, which is missing a leg. Amina is nearly blind and has almost nothing left but her hospitality. We will continue to help her with food. Pray that she will gain an appetite for the Bread of Life.

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