Day 5 & Final Thoughts of The Food Challenege

It's only 8:20 and I'm blogging about my day today because I think you can already guess how it's going to be, full of hunger and boring food choices! My plan today is to have my oatmeal in about a half hour and then we're eating rice and beans for lunch...for the last time! Tonight we will be going out to dinner for a flavorful meal of thankfulness. I plan to savor every single last bite. My mouth is watering just thinking about it and we don't even know where we're going yet!

Though we participated in the food challenge, another part of the challenge this week that Jason and I did not participate in was to sleep on the floor one night (last night) without a mattress -- just blankets. I think this goes without saying, but many of those living without food are living in less than satisfactory conditions when it comes to shelter. Though Jason and I didn't even discuss the possibility of sleeping on the floor, I can't imagine how crabby we'd have been been had we decided to do that. Before bed last night, I happened to be laying on the floor with Sam and Cooper and realized just how awful it'd have been to have to sleep there for the night, not to mention every night. And even if we did have to sleep on the floor, our conditions are excellent - we have a roof over our heads and walls protecting us. At church on Sunday a story was shared of a young boy and girl who had lost their parents and were trying to make it on their own. All the boy had wanted was a shelter with locked doors because at night, every night, men would come in and abuse his sister and there was nothing he could do to stop them. My heart just breaks for these children and families. To think I complain when I can't sleep because it's too loud outside and I forgot to turn on my sound machine.

To summarize the week, it's been trying having to eat on less food than "normal." While I've been hungry and extra irritable, I can never imagine what it would be like to live in conditions like so much of the world is. My heart has been broken a tiny bit more this week and I pray that we can all come together and help make the world a much better, safer, cleaner place for those who aren't as fortunate as us. Thanks for sharing this journey with me and thanks so much for your prayers! Looking back on the week, as much as I complained about hunger (and still am as my stomach growls) I have felt your prayers and know the Lord was and is with me. I pray that those around the world can and will continue feel yours and my prayers and God's presence.