The One Where I Feed the Hungry

Thu, Aug 07 2008 by Vanessa.

A very good friend of mine took me on a trip today that broke my heart, brought joy to my day and showed me, once again, how wonderful my life is. First, let me tell you about my friend. Her name is She-Ra or Wonder Woman, whichever you prefer. She holds down a full time job as a software engineer, she cares for her amazingly well-mannered son, her devoted husband and her adorable little dog, she invited three (yes count them … one, two, three…) foster children into her home recently, she takes such loving care of her mother who lives several hours away and yet she still finds time to help those in need by delivery lunches for Meals On Wheels during her lunch hour. Think you “don’t have time” to volunteer? Check out this woman and you’ll soon feel like a piece of dog poo, rotting in the hot Texas sun for uttering such false words. EVERYONE has time to volunteer just one hour every couple weeks or every month so don’t give me the “I’m just too busy” excuse.

Anyway, back to She-Ra. So, She-Ra and I drove through a fairly impoverished part of San Antonio to deliver something like 10 lunches to elderly people in need. One poor woman sat outside her house, in the heat and humidity, for an hour and a half to make sure she didn’t miss us. It was her first day so she found herself learning the ropes, just as I was! The sweet little old lady spoke Spanish so I only caught bits and pieces of her conversation with She-Ra (oh yeah, She-Ra is bilingual too!) but the poor thing who was caring for a small kitten (see … even SHE finds time to care for another less fortunate soul) wanted to make sure she didn’t miss her lunch so she sat on the porch for hours. It really made me think … I complain that I have cravings, that I sooooo want a Blizzard right now, but that poor woman wasn’t having a craving. She was just hungry. A menu was not provided, offering selections of Top Choice meats or organically grown fruits and vegetables from far-away exotic places. Nope. She sat there waiting for whatever someone might be kind enough to bring to her. What if she doesn’t like the chicken tenders, mixed veggies, slice of bread, pear and chocolate milk that we delivered? Tough cookies, no pun intended.

So, I ask myself, how in the name of our founding fathers did America EVER let this happen? When did we become a society that allows our elderly to be hungry? How did we become so incredibly selfish and just plain greedy that we will actually utter the words “I don’t have the time or money to volunteer” and then turn around and go out to eat or go to the movies hours later? Shame on America. Luxuries abound in America and yet we find it more important to invest millions of dollars in the creation of sports arenas than we do feeding our own people. So much food is wasted every single day in this country while people go hungry. Why? Bureaucracy in my opinion. Any restaurant manager can attest to the POUNDS of food that are thrown out everyday … food that wasn’t ever touched or delivered to a table. WHY oh WHY can’t we find a way to distribute this food to those who are hungry? Maybe I’ll put that on one of my to-do lists. It just makes sense.

In the meantime, I’ll keep fostering dogs, donating money to humane societies, raising money for agencies who help those with Down Syndrome and now, maybe I’ll add deliver meals to elderly in need every other Thursday with She-Ra. My activities may not change the world but hopefully they at least change the day for somebody out there. Do unto others and you would have them do unto you!

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