R12 a day: Day 1

I'm doing the R12 a day challenge. If you'd like to know more about how you can do the challenge or if you want to donate money towards food for those in my church living below the bread line, please mail me at doodlesofajourno at gmail dot com.

Here's the menu for the next few days:

Today:
Breakfast: mealie meal porridge
Snack: banana
Lunch: 2min noodles
Supper: spaghetti with soya mince and veg (specifically, I found a special at Fruit & Veg City for 3 punnets of yellow patty pans for R10)

Tuesday:
Breakfast: mealie meal porridge
Snack: orange
Lunch: leftover spaghetti with soya mince
Supper: homemade potato gnocchi with tomato and onion sauce

Wednesday:
Breakfast: mealie meal porridge
Snack: orange
Lunch: leftover homemade potato gnocchi with tomato and onion sauce
Supper: vegetable soup (using the other two punnets of patty pans) with bread with our small group (we are asking each member to bring R4 - a third of their daily allowance)
Dessert: Jelly. (No custard, I'm afraid)

Thursday:
Breakfast: mealie meal porridge
Snack: banana
Lunch: leftover veggie soup and bread
Supper: spinach omelettes

One of the biggest eye-openers for me is how hard it is not to be able to buy something I crave. Often, I'll say to TSC, "What do you want for supper tonight?" or "I feel like roast chicken". Having to stick to a set menu is hard, and I can't imagine how tough it must be for those who really live under the bread line - they don't have the luxury of planning ahead what they'll eat. R12 a day is an average - not something you can bet on. So someone living in poverty might be able to earn R30 doing an odd job on one day, but then earn nothing for the next three.

Also, living on R12 of food a day is tough, but for people living in abject poverty, their meagre income, whatever it might be, has to cover ALL their expenses - transport, medicine, education... everything.

The biggest challenges for me so far:

• Trying to plan a menu that isn't just starch-based; one that includes fruit, veg, fats and protein too.
• Only drinking water. No coffee, no cold drinks, no tea, no alcohol. This is much tougher on TSC than on me (my terrible gastro meant I have only had two cups of coffee in the last two weeks. He, on the other hand, is used to five cups a day).
• Trying to think about how to turn this challenge into something helpful in the long run. Yes, it will help me to build empathy with the poor, but how can that change my behaviour for the good of those in need? And no, I'm not talking about regular hand-outs - that's not how I think we can help. 

(PS: We leave on Thursday night for CT and will be staying with friends, so won't be able to do the final day of the challenge).