View from the Cab: A tale of dishes

High up on our kitchen refrigerator hangs a nice little saying that makes you really appreciate everything.

It goes something like this: “Thank God for dirty dishes, they have a tale to tell. While other folk go hungry, we’re eating very well. With home and health and happiness, we shouldn’t want to fuss. For by this stack of evidence, God’s very good to us!”

I thought it was only appropriate to share this poem by an unknown author as we just finished up Thanksgiving and are heading into the Christmas season. It really is the perfect time to reflect on how lucky we really are. Mom cut this poem out of a newspaper years ago and taped it above the sink in her home growing up. She gave us a copy of it in recent years. In fact, I can still see the faded yellow paper on the tile wall in my grandmother’s house.

Sometimes I want to put off doing the dishes or get a little frustrated with the amount of silverware our family goes through in a day, but that’s nothing compared to what some are going through. We often take those little things in life for granted even though the holidays are a time when we typically count our blessings.

The website www.feedingamerica.org states that farm communities often have individuals facing hunger. This seems unlikely since these are the very places where food is grown to feed the world. Children and seniors may be at greater risk than others for hunger, according to Feeding America. Many are just one medical issue or job loss away from food insecurity.

The organization reports that there are 4,150 food insecure people in Livingston County, 21,020 in McLean and 1,530 in Ford. Find out how you can help out by contacting your local food pantry or by searching the Feeding America website.

If we do our part to help out, maybe everyone can truly have a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.

(The View from the Cab blog is powered each week by Petersen Motors in Fairbury)