Mangoes, Money, and the Abundant Life
Fred Elliot-hart
January 1, 2001
Six people asked me for something last Thursday, which is slightly more than usual. The first request came from a woman in my neighborhood, who asked for a ride as I made my short drive into the country town of St. Ann's Bay, Jamaica, where I am a social worker at the public health clinic. Then came a pregnant stranger at the clinic, half-asking, half-demanding that I buy her some banana chips. Soon thereafter, a weathered old man in the lobby mistook me for a doctor and began describing a medical condition in the hope I could help. Later, as I walked back from lunch, I almost managed to avoid an aggressive young man clothed like a neglected scarecrow, begging relentlessly for change. Then, as I neared the clinic, I encountered a sweet elderly lady who once sold snacks under the "No Vending" sign at my clinic. Whenever I didn't have the change to buy her mint candies, she'd wave me off with a smile, telling me just to give her what I had. Last Thursday she asked me what I could do for her and accepted a large cowfoot mango from a bag of four I had just bought. But the clincher came at the end of the day at the post office. A friendly farmer from whom I sometimes bought produce on the street started telling me about a telegram he needed to send his son. I began calculating how much the telegram would cost and deciding whether to give him the money for it. After explaining the importance of the telegram, he leaned toward me and said, "I'm asking if you can write it for me as I do not write." If there was a no-brainer that day, that was it. We sat at a table off to the side where he dictated and I wrote, feeling immensely grateful for what struck me as a sacred moment. Two requests that day had little to do with money-they tapped ...
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