Hunger- Reflections Ramadan 24

A few days into Ramadan I stuck a paper on the fridge to keep track of daily food wastage- leftovers that no one wants to eat, tea that went cold, fruits or veges that went bad lying in the fridge, food that tasted awful because it was prepared in a state of fasting, etc.

I don't think anyone @ home realises the list is up. It's been a great personal exercise. I've been encouraged to eat leftovers all the time, and I personally don't mind it at all.

We seem to have lost all humility when eating food. The Prophet (pbuh) would eat his meals with great humility, almost as if it was a ritual. His intention wasn't enjoyment. Once Umar (ra) found someone eating and buying lots of grapes(?) in the market. Umar asked him, "what's this?" To which the man responded, "my family asked for some..", Umar (ra) said, "Is that everything you desire, you will buy?"

Is that, everything we desire, we will eat and indulge in? How controlled are our eating habits?
We need to think what are we being nourished by- Is it from the remembrance of Allah, or is it from food? Over-eating is another disease of the heart.

Some things have been irritating me a lot. Pakistanis watching Pakistani politics nowadays. Ask them, and they'll tell you exactly what's going on- how it's all wrong. They'll tell you about all the propagandas, and about why a certain politician is stupid, and why the other one is an idiot. Oh, and they're excellent also in immitating and mocking them. How everyone's just after power and they're so dumb that they don't realise people can see through their tactics, so on and so forth.
BUT ask a Pakistani about the hunger problem in Pakistan. Ask them about the flood or earthquake victims. Ask them how many people didn't have food to eat for iftar. Ask them how many people suffer because of the extreme weather in certain places. You can't ask them. They don't know.
I'm upset.

From Time.com:


Breidjing Refugee Camp, Chad: Stirring the Pot
Sudanese refugee D'jimia Souleymane prepares a pot of aiysh, a thick porridge which she and her family eat three times a day.
Breidjing Refugee Camp, Chad: Water Bearers
A woman and child carry drinking and cooking water from a distribution point back to their tent.

Breidjing Refugee Camp, Chad: United Nations Food Distribution Center
A refugee woman sifts through sand in order to pluck out any bits of grain which might have dropped to the ground during the previous day's ration disbursement.