A chair may not seem like much of a luxury, but if you’ve ever had to sit on newspaper-covered floor to eat a bare-bones dinner of rice and water, it is quite the step up.
Every year, the Eight Grade Class at Robert C. Parker School puts on a dinner event to raise funds for the hungry in our community, and to educate the public about world hunger. They alternate between an Oxfam or Empty Bowls program.
The last time we attended the Oxfam Hunger Banquet, my son was just eight years old, and none too excited to draw a ticket that placed us in the lowest class. He didn’t want to sit on the floor, and he definitely did not want to eat rice with his fingers. (See article.)
Fortunately, our luck has turned. This time, I drew a middle class ticket that entitled me to sit in a chair, and get a meal of rice AND beans. Alex was even luckier, drawing an upper class ticket. He sat at a small table covered in linens and fine china, where he was served a full course meal that began with appetizers and ended with desert. A far cry from the small bowl of rice that most of the diners received!
These were Parker Parents, a feisty bunch who weren’t going to take this inequity lightly. Some kids begged for scraps from the fine table. A militant bunch marched in protest, holding up newspapers and hand-drawn posters to make their point. They made their point, but didn’t get any goodies.
It was all in good fun. I would’ve joined them too, but I was too busy consuming my own scraps from the high table, a divine slice of chocolate cake handed over with great beneficence by my son.
Resources:
Related Articles:
- Learning About Hunger at the Oxfam Banquet (2007)
- Learning About Hunger
- Hunger 101: It’s The Season To Be Merry and Hungry!
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