Today was a pretty full day at the Temple Beth El office,
with meetings, sound system set up, counseling, etc. Hungerwise, the day passed well.
For breakfast I ate a baked potato with yogurt and some leftover chili
(It’s still going well.) and a banana.
Lunch included an egg salad sandwich and soup from a meeting that was
held the night before, and our staff believed that I could certainly take
advantage of food that was present in the workplace. For dinner, we made the whole wheat spaghetti, canned marinara
sauce with added onions and celery, a lettuce salad with cucumber and carrots,
and an apple. No other dessert, but I
am accustomed to eating some dark chocolate in the evenings (cardiovascular
benefit), but I did not buy them with my grocery allotment.
From what I hear from my friends and congregants, there is a
lot of success going on. There is also
a lot of preparation time in these meals, time that someone in poverty would
not have. I am going to keep track of my
time in meal preparation, and then consider whether that mirrors the life of
someone who has two kids and no partner to help out in the home.
Joanna Berke has made these observations about her experiences on the Challenge:
ReplyDeleteFirst I'm realizing very clearly just how limited my choices are. It seems being on "food stamps" truly makes you a slave to the almighty dollar.
Second, the choices I have are so narrow they make enjoying the food I'm eating nearly impossible.
Third, I thought I understood what the limitations were before I started this - I didn't!
Fourth, my empathy for people limited in this way has grown correspondingly with my understanding of the limitations.
Fifth, I'm counting my lucky stars I'm where I am in the greater food chain.
Sixth, I'm grateful for the opportunity to learn all this!
Seventh, I do believe I'm planning a meal at Flemmings, or some other equally extravagant dining establishment, and as soon as possible! (If anybody in the group wants to declare his /her liberation with me, so much the better!)