rice

What if for all your life, two times a day, all you had to eat was rice? What if you never had a starch version such as pasta or potatoes. Just rice. No other starch, no meat, not even children's "dreaded" vegetables. Maybe around the holidays a small goat was donated to feed your family, which is once a year. But the next day you were back to eating rice.

One day, A new Director of the orphanage was chosen. I think they should have kept the former one as he was a former orphan. Anyway two weeks into new management and the orphanage had no rice for lunch nor dinner. (Just when you think it could not be worst). A few of us drove around looking for a market that sold kilos of rice. Well we finally found one, using the monetary donations given through Hope worldwide; the children would not go to bed hungry. From that time on the Director was more responsible.

Although this may be the saddest post I have ever written so far. I have witnessed this form of starvation first hand at the orphanage. What amazes me is that I have seen teenagers in the orphanage. Once they go out, before curfew is over, they get left overs at the local restaurant for a feast they have never tasted. But for the younger ones I sent the cook out for the day and had to feed an orphanage of 200 + staff. I made pasta and mixed veggies into it. I seasoned it really nicely and added red onions for boosting the immune system. For them this was a feast. For me I had no idea this was such hard work. But it was worth seeing them slurping it up, spinning and twirling the spaghetti in the air; hitting each other as though they were playing tag before eating it. What did I expect? Nothing different. They did not know what Spaghetti was or what it taste like. Translated: "Petrina, what is this" the children said. I responded, "Pasta". "Pasta nice, make for us again" they said.

The next time you get a chance to give money to the poor, someone homeless on the street, plegdges being requested from a reputable organization, especially those overseas, do what you can to be supportive. Giving really goes a long way. That for a day they were able to eat and for a few days they had PASTA and for the holidays they had their fill of meat. For that time, at least, they did not have to eat rice.