This is not exactly a documentary. Rather, it is a slice-of-life dramatization which is closely based of the life of its star, condensing into one day activities which might conceivably have taken somewhat longer in "real" life. Lillian Foley plays herself, a black woman in her fifties who runs a boarding house in Virginia and supports herself and several young children. In the film, after seeing her young wards (grandchildren, mostly) off to school, Lillian has a meeting with the daughter of one of her older, ailing residents. She is trying to persuade her that the old woman needs to go to the hospital. Later, she interviews a prospective tenant, negotiates terms with an insurance man, deals with her own daughter regarding the grandchild she is looking after, cooks meals for everyone in sight, and finally takes in yet another fosterling.