In Haiti, many children are fed mud pies, which sometimes are made with vegetable shortening and salt, when there is nothing else to eat. Francis McGovern, who works at Food For The Poor as a donor service representative, shares his childhood story of sampling mud pies. This was first published on our Facebook page in December.
“Here’s something you don’t know about me: I ate a mud pie. When I was really small, about 4 or 5 years old, I was in my cousin’s backyard with a few other children about my age. There was one little girl who got us all together to play “House” and she was making dinner. There before us, in our plates, were mud pies. Yes, mud pies. Being the age I was I ate it.
One day at work, a member of our Food For The Poor team returned from a mission trip to Haiti where she was among the poorest of the poor. (You could never imagine the type of poverty she saw, unless you have seen, smelled, tasted and touched such poverty for yourself. Bless God Almighty for what we have right now.) With her, she had brought back what you see in the picture.
These were broken pieces from mud pies that had dried out and hardened. My co-worker brought them to share as a reminder of why we do this work. The mothers in Haiti make mud pies to feed their children when there is absolutely nothing else; which is all too often. Although filled with minerals from the dirt, the mud pies have no nutritional value.
Could you imagine them on a plate, set before your children or grandchildren?
We have so much more than these children and families. Would you please consider giving away some of what you’ve been blessed with for the sake of these children? Would you please consider giving away some of what you’ve been blessed with for the sake of your soul and for the sake of your children and grandchildren as you set the example to give to others this Christmas and throughout your life?
Give to those who could never possibly repay you.
Proverbs 19:17 says it best: “Whoever is generous to the poor lends to the LORD, and he will repay him for his deed.” I know that you know this, but sometimes we need to encourage one another to do the right thing and to even do it with sacrifice and in prayer when our mind tells us ‘but I have already given or I don’t have enough for myself or my own.’ ”
