THEY were HUNGRY

Meanwhile, back in Africa… Our education/humanitarian aid group (RATA) had their first night staying in a backpackers hostel in the Cape Town suburb of Observatory (refer to September 6 and June 1 posts about our work in South Africa). It was a rowdy night outside with street people laughing, swearing, fighting and drinking. Inside, despite ear plugs, we all had very little sleep.  The next night our team leader Glenys was cooking a meal for everyone and I was her not so capable assistant. As the meal was being plated up she said to me, “The best of the meal is going to the street people.” Note: Not the leftovers. 

Our paper plates were piled high with steaming hot food as we descended down the rickety staircase. Opening the door we were assailed by the sights, sounds and smells of a foreign city in a foreign land. We took a few steps on the footpath and were surrounded by hungry and desperate men and women. Silence as they began to eat. 

A drunk man, staggering towards me, pirouetted and knocked the last plateful of food from my hand in a wide arc onto the footpath. With feverish hands he scraped the food together and ravenously ate it. He must have been so hungry and the footpath was so dirty. 

POINTS to PONDER
Be grateful for our social welfare system in New Zealand/Aotearoa. It’s not perfect, but it sure beats the alternative. But as the gap between the rich and poor widens in our country, could a similar situation arise?
Be generous and thoughtful in your giving to people. In that moment of time, use ‘what is in your hands’ to help others less fortunate than yourself. 
Don’t be quick to judge people who are ‘down and out’. Make a choice to give. They need your love too. 

Kindness should never be selective as it’s about meeting the needs of people, no matter what.