Free Food for Millionaires

A book club I was a part of a number of years back read a book by the title, Free Food for Millionaires. If memory serves, the title came from a conversation at an office on Wall Street. A catered lunch was  delivered for all of the wealthy Wall Street types and in a discussion with the protagonist of the story, a young second generation Korean immigrant, he coined the phrase "free food for millionaires."

I have been thinking a lot about this lately. The thoughts were sparked by the comments of a colleague who participated in a SNAP awareness program. For those who are unaware of what SNAP is, this is the food subsidy the government offers to those who are poor in America. It is designed to run out before the end of the month...and true to design, that is exactly what happens. My colleague lived on $5 a day, the allotted SNAP subsidy, for a week. One of her reflections were that she didn't realize how often in her own life food is readily available for free - at catered work meetings, or reimbursement for work lunches, etc. This is what sparked my reflection. It led me to the conclusion that I live a subsidized life.

While many criticize those who rely on such safety-net programs as SNAP, the majority do so without appreciating the abundance of their own privilege or acknowledgement of the subsidies they enjoy. I took stock of my current subsidies and here is a short list that I came up with:

• Like those in the story - I am the lucky recipient of many lunches or dinners paid for by my employer or partnering institutions in the course of my work. While it doesn't happen every day, it does happen at least once per month and usually more frequently than that.
• My employer offers mileage reimbursement, which subsidizes the expense of auto fuel for my vehicle. I have a fuel efficient vehicle so the reimbursement rate is generous.
• My employer picks up a portion of my cell phone bill. While there is also an expectation that I use this for work purposes, and I do, that reimbursement amount is a subsidy that I receive, because I would have a cell phone bill with or without the job.
• While there are IRS rules that restrict this and I am always VERY conscious of not appearing to receive favored treatment or to compromise  integrity - I do receive invites to events and meetings that may have an entrance fee for others. That is a subsidy.

These were just the subsidies I encountered in the course of a week, while it was on the forefront of my mind. While I am far from being a millionaire, and do not aspire to such, I do receive generous subsidies that allow me to do other things with my money.

In the past I received even more benefits: a corporate car where I had zero financial obligation and a housing allowance that covered living expenses.

I post this, because I want to maintain a position of gratitude for my good fortune. I do not want to take my blessings for granted. And, I have no place to judge those who rely on assistance for survival when I am benefiting from assistance myself. The source of my aid may not be from the government, but it is a subsidy just the same.

just Sheri, a subsidy recipient

quoteable quotes: Margaret Thatcher

In memory of the Iron Lady, my favorite quote:

Being powerful is like being a lady. If you have to tell people you are, you aren't.
~ Margaret Thatcher

GPS tracking for aid workers

It is sad that we live in a world where inventing such a device is necessary. Human decency should dictate that those who are helping should remain unharmed, but that is not the reality. My last year "in the field" a female colleague was captured and held captive for over 100 days. Stories like this are becoming far too common. In response, technology has been developed to send early warning alerts, but it still requires courageous individuals to act on behalf of another...courageous individuals seem to be in short supply. God, strengthen our courage that we will confront the evils in this world.

 

Bracelet For Human Rights Workers Sends Kidnapping Alerts to Facebook, Twitter http://www.popsci.com/technology/article/2013-04/bracelet-human-rights-workers-sends-kidnapping-alerts-facebook-twitter?dom=fb&src=SOC

2013 theme: siempre fiel (always faithful)

Let love and faithfulness never leave you;

bind them around your neck,

write them on the tablet of your heart. Proverbs 3:3

Image: Zenia via Flickr

If you are a faithful reader of this blog, then you know that I gave up New Year's resolutions many moons ago. However, I do use the start of a new year as a time of reflection. In the place of a resolution, I create a personal development plan. There are various sections: physical, relational, intellectual, and spiritual. I write it down and check back in multiple times throughout the year. This approach has produced far superior results to a single resolution. 

I borrowed the idea from a Pastor I once heard at an inner-city church in Kansas City; I made it my own by giving each development plan a theme, usually centered around a fruit of the spirit. This "fruit" is a character quality I want to grow in my life.

This year's theme: faithfulness in small things

There was a time when I had a BIG dream. Then I was afforded the opportunity to live my calling. For some reason unknown to me, these things were stripped away - leaving me with questions about identity and the future. I made a choice to press on, but the struggle with contentment and a lack of a defined purpose remained.

I have begged and pleaded for a renewed sense of purpose, for some kind of instruction about what is next. I have received the same answer for an extended period of time:

I Peter 4:2 From now on, then, you must live the rest of your earthly lives controlled by God's will and not by human desires.

For this period of time I have been trying to rise each day to receive my marching orders, then carry them out. However, I don't rise each day anticipating or listening for marching orders. Even when I receive them, I don't always carry them out.

Enter the theme of faithfulness...It is my aim to listen, anticipate, and act. No task is too small. Negotiating is unproductive. Delaying reduces the potential impact. Act immediately. When I have done this, the results have been staggering. I have been used as a tool of encouragement or provision to meet needs I was not told about directly. While I may not have know, God knew. As a result of my obedience, these folks felt loved by our Heavenly Father because He was the one they were crying out to for direction or relief.

This year, I am making a conscious effort to be faithful in the small things...things that could be interpreted as insignificant, but matter a LOT to those who are discouraged or hurting.

just Sheri, hoping to be transformed in to a faithful servant

storyteller

In my homeland of New Mexico there is a common image - the Native American storyteller. There are variations on the theme; but it is basically a woman, surrounded by children with her mouth open because she is telling a story. Something like this.

Photo via The Children's Museum of Indianapolis (Wikimedia Commons)

Well, I recently participated in a real life reinactment.

Actually, I really like this picture and I am glad someone captured this moment. Recently, I have been surrounded by families and welcomed in to their lives in very meaningful and intimate ways.

While I may not have children of my own...to run round and round and round the dining table....or duck behind the couch because they just can't resist crawling in the space between it and the wall...or slide on the wood floor in their socks...or be amazed at the small trampoline in the basement...to color with or read to. Other people have kids that will come to my house and make the space a play zone or leave pretty pictures that they colored.

I am honored these families have invited me in to their lives and I like the frenzy of activity and creativity their children bring to our home.

Matthew 19:14 Jesus said, "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these."



just Sheri, looking forward to the next storytime