Hunger::

hun-ger (hnggr) n. 1. a. A strong desire or need for food. b. The discomfort, weakness, or pain caused by a prolonged lack of food. 2. A strong desire or craving: a hunger for affection.

I have never been hungry. I have never wondered where my next meal will come from or if a drought will ruin my family's crops. I have never had to beg for food. I have never been hungry....but there are so many in the world who are hungry each and every day. Did you know that it is estimated that over one billion people in the world suffer from hunger and malnutrition (statistic form The Hunger Site)? Did you know that approximately 24,000 people die each day from hunger related causes and three fourths of those are children under the age of five?

These are statistics I cannot even begin to understand...but I have to grasp them somehow.

I got on the computer this afternoon to the BBC News page. I love the BBC because I can hop on their site and get instant information on things going on in Africa, specifically Ethiopia. This afternoon I stumbled across this article and it just made my heart hurt so badly for my child-to-be's home country. The article was about how UNICEF is saying that 60,000 children in two regions in Ethiopia are going to require food aid for survival. Approximately 147 million dollars is needed to help Ethiopia recover from drought, poor rainy season, and the high price of food. Without this help, the situation looks bleak.

So, yes, I live in a society where hunger is something that is seen only behind closed doors. Hunger does happen in the United States, but we do not openly see hunger on the streets. We do not see the children with the potbellies, and bones sticking out. Hunger is such a silent disease, but unlike cancer, we know the cure for it. Hunger is something that we have not experienced and will not fully understand unless we see it first hand and decide to make a difference. What can we do to help? Here are a list of a few sites dedicated to helping flight hunger around the world. Please visit these site

First Food Bank - a great list of 40 ways to fight hunger
Action Against Hunger - lots of great info about hunger around the world
Free Rice - Play a simple vocab game and grains of rice are donated.
World Food Programme - Updates on hunger issues around the world.