Helen Katerina Francis grinding sorghum on a rock near her home as she cannot afford to have it ground at the local mill. Her husband is a government soldier and has been away for a long time. He cannot support his family, soldiers frequently go unpaid for long periods of time, leaving her to fend for herself, their children and two elderly grandparents. Helen had been living with a brother who was helping to support them, but he recently died and the family is facing a hard time and Helen says she has fed them nothing but pumpkin leaves for the past week.
