Next time your belly's full, think about.....

10^th December 2012

The only difference between stumbling blocks and steppingstones is the way in which we use them. Unknown

 

 

Yesterday morning a friend told me how she’d been helping out at a food bank, then another spent yesterday afternoon helping at a soup kitchen and it really got me thinking.  At this time of year most of us (actually if you have a weight issue, it’s any time of year!) spend time thinking “What can I eat next”, and yet there are so many out there thinking “When will I eat next”.  I’m not talking about the starving that the Band Aid Christmas song “Feed the World” helped; I’m talking about the 13 million people in this country that live below the poverty line in 2012!  A quarter of a million hungry Britons will have used emergency food banks by the end of this year!  These stats are staggering; apparently the reasons for having to resort to free food include delays in the processing of benefit claims, low pay and debt.

 

This is nothing new, as I was telling my mom about it she started to get teary eyed as she told me the Salvation Army had once done similar for her, they’d turned up on her doorstep with a food parcel when we were kids, she was flabbergasted and grateful beyond belief.  When she asked them how they knew, they simply replied, “we just do”, so someone had obviously told them she was struggling.  This was a time when my father (who’s now dead) was in prison (oh yeah we all have a story to tell!) and when she told him what had happened, his response was “shame there wasn’t a bottle of scotch in there for me!” (kind of explains why we don’t really miss him much doesn’t it that statement!)

We shared a few tears yesterday, recalling our past, they are memories I’ve chosen to forget (it’s a knack I have, bad memories have their uses).  It shows that everyone has different reasons for needing help, its way too easy for people to think “get a job” or “I’m alright Jack!”  There are a good many people out there right now needing help who never thought they would, redundancy in a time of recession can turn your world upside time, then there are oaps and the homeless, if you have a roof over your head, and food in your belly then you are blessed.

 

There are charities like Food Banks or the Salvation Army that do food parcels for people in need so I’ve decided I’m going to start collecting to help out.  Therefore if you have any of the list (it’s long life stuff that’ll keep) that follows to spare, please bring it to your meeting this week and we’ll start to make a difference, let’s all “DONATE & LOSE WEIGHT!”   We can also collect up all the unused chocolates and food after Christmas that you have left over so that we can get back on track straight away.   If of course you’re not one of my members you can find local charities online to donate too, there’s always the Salvation Army, Trussell Trust Food Banks, YMCA’s, and homeless shelters, they’ll be somewhere, you may even just know a family who could do with some support, why not make them a gift basket up.

 

Here’s the list;

 

The general shopping list is:

• Milk (UHT or powder, pref. semi-skimmed)
• Cereal (preferably non-sugared)
• Tinned Soup
• Fruit Juice (carton long life)
• Fruit Squash
• Pasta / Cooking Sauces
• Baked Beans / Spaghetti
• Rice/Sponge Pudding (tin)
• Tomatoes (Tinned)
• Pasta/Rice/Cous Cous (500g / 1kg)
• Tinned Veg (carrots, sweetcorn, peas, mixed)
• Tea Bags (40’s/80’s), Coffee (small)
• Potato (Instant Mash or tinned)
• Tinned Meat/Fish (corned beef, ham, minced beef, spam / tuna etc)
• Tinned Ready meals (Curry, macaroni cheese, chilli, beans & sausages, cauliflower cheese)
• Tinned Fruit (in juice preferably)
• Sugar (500g / 1kg)
• Biscuits, Crackers, Crispbreads
• ‘Healthy Snacks’ (Raisins, Apricots etc)

a ‘Homeless Pack’  includes some of the items:

• Can opener
• Wash bag
• Bowl
• Mug
• Set of cutlery
• Soap, shower gel, bath creme
• Shampoo
• Deodorant
• Anti-bac hand gel
• Toothbrush toothpaste
• Flannel / sponge
• Tissues (handy handbag packs)
• Nappies (all sizes)
• Baby wipes
• Sanitary towels (not tampons)
• Toilet roll
• Shaving gel / cream (not razors)

I know a lot of folks are wary of giving to charity because they say they don’t know where the money is going, but if you give food then you kinda do!

 

Have a great week everyone, and be aware that you have a choice to eat more or less, some don’t.

 

Lot’s of love this festive season. xx

My little boy eats better than some people in this country!  That's never right...