Hunger Pangs

Hunger pangs.  I thought they were a myth.

This evening I had my first little bout with real pain from hunger.  Don't get me wrong...I've felt hungry, felt and heard my stomach rumbling, and suffered through my digestive tract being uncomfortable.  But this is the first time I've had pain.

It was short lived.  A laid down and read for a while to take my mind off it.

I'm feeling helpless tonight.  With only a few people offering to contribute anything to this project, I realize that this may very well be more of a personal journey for me than a project that really makes a difference for those out there who are starving.

So, I'm going to share with you some different organizations that are making a difference in world hunger over the next couple of weeks other than Numana.

The first is Heifer International.  This organization works to provide a "hand up rather than a hand-out" to those in starving nations.  Through gifts and donations they provide families with agricultural training and livestock that not only supply them with food but also with a source of income to buy additional items to satisfy their needs.

I first heard about this organization when I was teaching high school keyboarding.  One of the letters students had to type was directed to this organization.  I had never heard of it before and assumed it was just a fictional name.  But I looked it up.

That was years ago and I've been impressed with their mission ever since.  In fact, the missions team at my church is looking at doing a Christmas mission to provide Heifer International gifts over the holidays to families in need.

I love this idea.  There are children that need the gift of food way more than our own kids need the latest gaming system.

Cold Shoulder

First...I'm grouchy and hungry.  I just want to go to bed right now.  My arms and legs are sore from walking and playing 18 holes of golf last night.  I just finished my homework.  And I suffered through my family's lunch at my favorite Mexican food place as well as serving them up German chocolate cake with ice cream this evening.

I also realized that I missed a homework deadline on Friday.  How did I manage to do that?  Grrrr...

I feel angry.  I know that doesn't make sense, but I do.  And I want to cry.  Won't that make me feel better?

Even knowing this is temporary and self-imposed doesn't provide me with comfort.  I feel helpless and hopeless.  Can I imagine a lifetime of being hungry?  The fatigue, difficulty in concentration, yearning for food, hopelessness, and ANGER...until death?

But, wait!  I have a comfy bed.  I have a supportive and helpful husband and healthy children.  I have clean water and even ice cubes at my disposal whenever I want them.  I am guaranteed a serving of food (through Numana) each and every day without fear that it will not be there tomorrow.  I have a car and a job and technology and a climate-controlled home!

No.  I don't get it.  Even after a year I won't be able to comprehend the lives of those in other cultures who are living in constant hunger.  Just rereading my whining above makes me realize what a spoiled baby I am.  Suck it up, cupcake!

Look at them.  Look at them!

What can I do?  What can we do?  Why are the vast majority of us doing nothing?  Do our beds, healthy families, clean water, food, cars, jobs, technology, and homes provide wonderful blinders to the realities of the world?

Open your eyes, people!  This world is full of evil and hurt.  And raving about how wonderful our lives are is ridiculous in the grand scheme of things.  (I'm guilty of this just like you are.)

If our lives are so darn good, we aren't doing enough to help those whose lives are a living hell.