November 20th, 2012 | by Jessica Erickson
Before the arrival of my son last year, I had big plans for the kind of child I would raise. He would be an excellent eater, eager to consume whatever I offered him. But reality intervened: At 16 months, he poked suspiciously at anything resembling a vegetable.
With my sights set on our upcoming Thanksgiving dinner—and a vision for my little cherub to join us for our annual family feast—I sought the advice of author Karen Le Billon. In her book French Kids Eat Everything, she recounts her family’s food and cultural immersion from a year living in France.
The French have a strong culture of food. More than just feeding their children for nourishment, they consider teaching kids about food to be a critical part of their early education. The unwritten rules of eating in France challenge Le Billon to rethink her approach, as she assumes greater ownership of deciding what and when her kids eat. She and her husband and kids eat together; they offer the children a wide range of dishes, cheerfully insisting that they try what’s served, all the while instilling good table manners and patience for slower-paced meals.
At first the children protest, and Le Billon admits to failed attempts. However, with persistence and enthusiasm, both of her young children happily enjoy fresh, healthy, and diverse meals.
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November 5th, 2012 | by Victoria Marzilli
Photo: Jacob Silberberg/Oxfam America
At an Oxfam America Hunger Banquet, the place where you sit, and the meal that you eat, are determined by the luck of the draw—just as in real life some of us are born into relative prosperity and others into poverty.
Unless you’ve been to one of these interactive events, it’s hard to explain how memorable, emotional, and inspirational it can be, to name just a few words we’ve heard from Oxfam supporters over the years. People often get in touch to tell us how a Hunger Banquet gave them a deeper understanding of hunger and poverty, or even a whole new perspective.
While this event has been a Thanksgiving seasonal tradition for nearly 40 years, we’ve seen social media bring a fresh energy to the scene that pushes the message far beyond the walls of the room and still captures that feeling of inspiration and connection.
So far, I’m impressed by the tweets I’ve read about people’s reactions to Oxfam America Hunger Banquets this fall. Believe me, I’m in the business of writing tweets–and I know how difficult it can be to convey such a BIG feeling in 140 characters. A few that caught my eye:
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November 26th, 2008 | by Zeenat Potia
Right on the verge of the holiday gorging season, I’ve gotten a glimpse of what it means to be hungry.
It all began with a knee injury earlier this year. Deprived of my usual stress busters–running and yoga—I took to filling that extra time with food. So a few weeks ago, I decided to embark on a “cleanse.” Based on a book called If the Buddha Came to Dinner, the cleanse prescribed a restricted diet as a means of transformational nourishment: renewed energy; healthy eating; and clarity of mind, body, and spirit.
No matter how much and how often I ate, the first five days—when you can eat only fruit and vegetables—were tough. Caffeine withdrawal gave me headaches and nausea. Instead of my old friends, sugar and wheat, I had to turn to kale and beets. My dreams of chocolate croissants remained unfulfilled. Slowly, I began to get into the groove, but I was always hungry.
One Sunday, on a walk through the vast, tree-filled Mount Auburn Cemetery in Cambridge, I came upon a couple sitting on a blanket unwrapping sandwiches. My heart skipped a beat: Was that bread? Indeed, I saw olive bread glistening in the sun. Bits of juicy avocado. Potato chips…
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