My response to today’s one-word prompt: Missing
Hunger! The feeling is foreign to me. I doubt I’ve ever truly been hungry in my life. Oh sure, I’ve had cravings from time to time and I’ve been hungry if I missed a meal for some reason, but I don’t recall ever feeling a pain deep inside that signals the need for food.
I’ve had my share of perceived need – of wanting something so bad I could taste it; but that’s not hunger! I’ve had an appetite for knowledge, a desire for success, a thirst for recognition and a yearning for respect, but that’s not hunger either.
I often wonder, with humanitarianism being so “trendy” these days, how it is possible not to get the right resources to the right place at the right time for those who are suffering the most. I remember when I was little my parents would say, “clean your plate, there are starving children in the world!”, and I would say, “well, let’s just send it to them then!” Unfortunately, it’s not that simple.
I have no answers. I don’t know the missing formula, but I do know that ignoring the problem won’t make it go away. Donate food, lend a hand, say a prayer, make a difference – not only at this time of year, but always!
Photo taken at the The Henry Doorly Zoo In Omaha, Nebraska.
Grammy Writes 
I decided a while back that instead of donating to organised charities (who seem to spend so much of the money on management staff) I would try to help more directly. This pretty much limits me to the local homeless people and their dogs, but as I am on a low income, allows me to at least contribute something directly, in a small way, with the knowledge that it is actually helping that person, rather than being soaked up in administration fees. The idea that there are people in our world who are starving, when we have so much waste, makes me want to cry.
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Me too! It sounds like you have found a wonderful way to offer assistance!
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I told myself I’d never say to my children that they should clean their plates because there are starving children in the world because like you I thought, when I was a kid, that it was a silly thing to say and wished I could send my unwanted food to those who’d appreciate it. But I have asked my children not to waste food because it’s like throwing away money. And we have talked about how there are people in the world who struggle and have made donations.
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Good for you for teaching awareness!
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