Requiring Little, Giving a Lot

(As told by Caring Coalition director Sat Kaur Khalsa)

Jaime and Nellie* have been receiving food from Caring Coalition throughout the pandemic.

A new volunteer and I were delivering food to their apartment one day in May. The family came out with their four children to meet us.

As always, Nellie greeted us with a warm and contented smile. Their oldest daughter, a well-spoken 12-year-old, had her chubby, cheerful one-year-old brother in tow. She told us how much she was enjoying watching him grow. She shared that she wanted to help her parents provide for him as he gets older.

Jaime approached us, saying, “Wait, before you go, I want to give you something!” He presented each of us with a dragon fruit cactus. He had more than two dozen plants growing under the staircase by his front door.

He shared his depth of knowledge about how to take care of the plant and the health benefits of the fruit itself with us. These plants require very little soil and water. I asked him if this was a business and if I could offer him something in return. He replied, "No, this is just something I am doing to help people."

This family is like the dragon fruit plant: thriving, healthy, and able to give, requiring so little for themselves.

*Names changed for privacy