The Lose-Lose Situation

This past Sunday I was out in Mineros San Juan for a round of visits with my fellow Franciscans Kristen and Richard. A woman that worked in the bakery until a few months ago delivered her baby on Friday, the reason for her departure from the bakery. We went to her house to see if there was anything that she needed. Though the current Bolivian government has provided free medical care for pregnant women, this woman delivered her baby girl in her house after about 30 hours of labor. After checking in with the family we moved on about the neighborhood. Our next stop was a neighbor of the new mother. We pulled up wooden step stools and were visiting with her. She was telling us about her life including an alcoholic husband and having to go into the city to beg for leftovers from the low-end restaurants. During a lull in conversation she disappeared into her house with a bucket of water she dipped out of their barrel. She then reappeared with a bowl full of corn on the cob for us to eat. Resistance was futile. We sat there and ate this corn on the cob that she couldn't afford to share with us while she watched. Somehow one of the cobs from the bowl that Kristen was holding fell to the ground. It had been raining so it is more correct to say that it fell into the mud. Without skipping a beat the woman grabbed up the soiled corn and rinsing it with water from the barrel put it back in the bowl for eating. At that point the clouds that had been rolling in picked up force and there were loud claps of thunder. We kindly excused ourselves because of the impending storm.
This is the work out in the barrio. We are greeted and welcomed with open arms at whatever house we happen to stop by. At the least they will send their oldest child out to buy soda to share but occasionally will present their supper for us to eat. As I said before resistance is futile. It is rude not to accept what is presented to you so we take it. We end up eating dirty food that is bad for us from people that have no other food for themselves. I don't know that there is an answer.