a little bit of rice and beans

Personally, I love to eat. I wouldn't say I'm grossly overweight, but my enjoyment of a variety of foods in sometimes less-than-moderate quantities does adversely affect my ability to be svelte. In that regard I'm probably like many Americans. And unlike many people around the planet who hardly get enough food to rebuild or replace their current cells. And for variety? Well, for many there's very little. (Or, so I've heard and believe. I don't really have good documentation for that at hand.) In many places people only have a small portion of rice or beans, and that's what they eat whenever they eat. 

Because this is a foreign reality to me and the folks I do church with, we've decided to take a few days and try to imagine (ever so slightly) what that might be like. For five days, starting on Sunday November 2 we're going to limit our diet to rice, beans, tortillas, and maybe some oatmeal. We're not being psycho about it. There will be no official check ups, tests, or reports. We just want to show a little solidarity with our planet-mates who don't enjoy ample quantities of a variety of tasty food. 

The second step in the effort is to try to determine cost difference between five days of beans and rice and five days of what we normally eat. We'll then take that money and donate it to some worthy cause. We're thinking we'll use it to help construct wells in parts of India that struggle to have clean water. 

If you're interested, click here to see where we got the idea. And here's the info that went out to our church: 

Half the world’s population lives on $2 a day or less. As an act of solidarity with our brothers and sisters around the globe, we encourage you to eat as they do for five days, November 2-7. Set aside the money you would have spent on additional groceries to contribute to a special offering to dig wells in India.

How to join in the 5-Day Rice and Bean Challenge:

• Limit your grocery shopping to rice, beans, plain oatmeal or Cream of Wheat, and tortillas.

• For one week eat only these foods. A one-cup serving is considered generous in most parts of the world. Meat is a luxury, with the average African consuming about ¾ ounce per day—the size of a small chicken nugget.

• Set aside the money you would have spent on additional groceries and redirect it toward the special offering to dig wells in India. Over $4K for these wells has been raised recently at Union Chapel/Commonway. 

John Adams: What a Man

Ann and I are nearing the conclusion of part seven of HBO's John Adams. You know that feeling of impending sadness as you near the end of a really good book? I'm feeling it big time. What a fascinating story. What an amazing man. 

The fear John Adams expresses repeatedly in this film has certainly been proved true in my life. the icons of the Revolution in my mind have always been Washington, Jefferson, Revere. I've given hardly a second thought to the second president. No more. 

Unless you have serious issues of conscience with television, I urge you to buy, rent, or borrow this series and watch it through. It's not entirely kid safe (Well, depending on your kids, I suppose.), so be aware. Except for a gruesome tar and feathering in the first episode, the three other snips that we'd edit out for our kids come with ample forewarning. And there are some bad words. Noble as the founding fathers were, they sometimes spoke with passion expressed by the oaths of the day. 

Here are some lessons for me from John Adams:

• Think hard, study hard, work tremendously hard.

• Marry a good woman (I've done this.) Listen to her often, carefully and with a mind to put into action what she says. (I could do better at this.)

• The anticipation of your place in history can haunt your fiercely.

• Adams had remarkable foresight in his younger days, but seemed as an old man to lose some of it. But what do I know of being old?

• Invest in good friends and stick with them.

• Revolution is for young men, but we'd all darn well better listen to the old men. They know, and realize they don't know, things which we have yet to imagine. 

One last thought: This film helped me decide one important issue. I'm definitely getting Paul Giamatti for my movie. And probably Laura Linney as well. No, I don't actually have a movie right now. But when I do, these two are definitely going to star in it. Until then, I'm going to work on perfecting my Paul Giamatti/John Adams glare, scowl and grin combo. See what I mean in these youtube clips. Go here for more info.