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The children of sub-Saharan Africa were happy to hear that you saved the rest of that chicken salad sandwich, even though you could have easily thrown it away because you have access to an almost overwhelming supply of nutritious food and a convenient waste disposal system.
When Amali, age 12, learned from your personal growth blog that you couldn’t bear to simply discard the rest of your perfectly good sandwich because you knew all about the plight of starving children in Africa, she was touched. “Tomorrow, when I take my daily 16-mile walk in the desert without shoes to collect water for my family, I’ll remember how hard it was for that girl in America to ask the barista for some plastic wrap, and I’ll know I’m not alone," said Amali.
She added that she completely related to your inward struggle over what to do with the partly eaten sandwich, because yesterday she had to choose between buying rice to feed her four siblings or being able to attend the fourth grade.
Amali totally understood that you were super busy at the time and could not donate any money to a cause that might actually prevent her from starving. “After all," she said, “that girl has already done so much. She carried around that chicken sandwich for two whole days before remembering she had it again and then throwing it away." Amali’s friend Farida was touched that you took a moment to think of them again before placing the moldy sandwich in the trash can.
Amali and Farida confirmed that, even though hearing about your sacrifice didn’t change the fact that they were severely malnourished, they really did appreciate how different you are from all those other consumption-obsessed young Americans.
Before going to help rebuild her war-torn village, Amali added that she looked forward to hearing about the trip to Africa you’re planning, which you’ll totally intend to go through with until you google all the parasites they have there.
