The activity in our Advent calendar today was to buy food to donate to the food pantry.
We talked about why we have a food pantry and why people might need to use it. I asked them what they thought we should buy and they had some great ideas. So, we headed to town and bought two full bags of food. The items we bought were macaroni and cheese, ravioli, canned vegetables and fruit, soup and saltine crackers. We drove right over to our church, where we have the local food pantry, and stocked the shelves. Unfortunately, I left my phone at home and didn't get any pictures :(
When we opened up the pantry, I was surprised what was on the shelves. There was an enormous amount of canned vegetables and beans, ramen noodles and jello boxes. I thought about if we ever had to use the food pantry, what would I even be able to make with this selection? I recently read an article about how people donate food they don't use in the cupboards to the food pantry and how hard it is for families who use that service to make meals for their family. I am guilty of bringing cans of kidney beans and tomato sauce as donations on several occasions.
This experience, even though it took just a few minutes, was eye opening to me. I hope it was for my kids as well. We take for granted that our cupboards and tummies are full. I complain that "we don't have any food in the house" the day before I go grocery shopping, even though there is plenty of things we could eat in the cupboard or fridge.
Did we change lives today? No. But, I hope that we made a few people smile when they opened the cupboard and saw something different than beans and ramen noodles to choose from for supper this week.
Check back tomorrow to see how Elfie is jumping on the giving train!
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