As the London Food Bank (and Toronto’s Daily Bread Food Bank) launches its spring food drive, with a greater need than ever, it reminds me that our world has its priorities all wrong.
And I include myself in that generalization. Children make up 25% of the population but 38% of food bank clients here in London. That statistic should horrify me but it doesn’t because of the conditioning we undergo from the start. No person should go hungry, anywhere, ever. There is enough food to feed everyone but there isn’t an equitable distribution of wealth so some starve and some don’t.
So should I feel guilty because I have a life of abundance and others don’t? No, that doesn’t help anyone. And I do what I can in my own way as I’m sure you do, too. Clearly, sadly, it still isn’t enough.
I didn’t discover comic Bill Hicks until long after he died of cancer at age 32 in 1994. He was a biting social commentator and no-holds-barred comic. By that I mean, he didn’t hold back on the truth. And this particular bit, a little on the more serious side, gets to me, right in the core and reminds me that the world has its priorities mixed up. I hope you hear what I mean.