You know you have found a soul sister when your idea of something fun to do on a Friday night is dump food into bags for two hours. But that is exactly what my friend Leah and I did for two hours last Friday night. Amid laughter, music, and lots of chatting, I realized that this was exactly what my soul needed. A break from the media and life to focus on a project way bigger than myself and with an organization I have a very personal connection to.
Rewind a few months. Leah asked me if I wanted to go to a packing party for this
organization called Feed My Starving Children (FMSC). I immediately said yes, perhaps way more enthusiastically than was to be expected. You see, back in 2009, I spent two months in a tiny country in Africa called Swaziland. While I was there, we had the opportunity to distribute some of the food that was packed and shipped from… Feed My Starving Children. I am not really sure how we got connected, but I remember the look on the faces when we arrived
with the food. We actually tasted it and its pretty good compared to some of the other food the kids go to eat. Not that starving kids are picky, but the food is packed full of nutrients and they have made a very conscious effort to create something that is culturally acceptable no matter where they ship it. And if you can do all that and still make it taste decent, it’s an added bonus. Ever since that summer, I have just held a special place in my heart for FMSC. Thus, I was ecstatic to be on this end as well.
Friday night we headed out to a local church to be involved in what FMSC calls “Packing Parties.” They have them all over the country and they are usually two-day events broken down into two-hour shifts in which volunteers go and pack the food into boxes to be shipped. Our goal was to pack boxes that would be sent to organizations in Haiti. The food helps alleviate some of the costs of running orphanages and care points for kids around the world. It’s a pretty elaborate process, but so much fun. After a short film and instructions on wearing hair nets, we went down to the gym and were given even more instructions on the actual process. Leah and I decided to jump on filling the bags with the food. They are made up of four ingredients -chicken, veggies, soy, and rice. We laughed so hard, jammed out to some music, and had a blast despite ending the night with sore hands and backs.
It left me incredibly thankful for the experiences I have had. Yes, anyone can be involved in packing the food, but to have an actual connection made the night more than just a fun thing to do. It was a reminder of my time spent in Africa and a reminder of how thankful I am for the blessings and opportunities I have been given. It also reminded me of how thankful I am for Leah and her friendship-it takes a special friend to find filling plastic bags with food for two hours an enjoyable experience. Her laughter, acceptance, and understanding of me is something I cherish. She is one of those rare friends that can finish a sentence, complete a thought, and read a mind. And after all that, she still likes me! Beyond that, it was so amazing to be part of this side of the organization. Overall, we(the group of people there) packed enough boxes of food to feed 121 kids for an entire year. In two hours. That’s 121 less kids that will be hungry. I think I can give up two hours for that.
What about you? It’s that time of year..any special service projects you are part of? Any organizations that you have a connection to?
