Fat and Poor

October 2008

At school, with Thanksgiving around - they've been talking about the poor. We donated some food. Liam was so proud doing that. And lately he've been reading the Nutrition Facts on food/drinks. Mostly looking at the "Fat" part. He would say this will make you fat or this will not make you fat. School is teaching health/nutrition stuff as well.

Liam: "Where's that big grey basket with toys?"
Mommy: "Oh, I gave them away."
Liam: "Why did you do that?" Tears starting to form
Mommy: "You have so many toys, we have to give some away. You get new toys all the time. We can't keep them all. I gave them away to the poor."
Liam: "But I wanted them. I want to keep all of my toys."
Mommy: "Think about it, would you like it if you had no toys at all?"
Liam: "I still want them." Tears running down his cheeks
Mommy: "The other kids are happy now that they have some toys, they're thinking 'Thanks Liam' You should be proud, just like donating foods."
Liam: "How do you know if people are poor?"
Mommy: "You can see that they are VERY skinny because they can't afford food and might be dirty. Some live on the streets - they are homeless."
Liam: "Maybe they rip their clothes and pretend that they are poor and get things for free."
Mommy: "No, they wouldn't do that. Most of the time, if you see someone poor, you will know. Also, there are some places that serve the poor. They would give donated things to the right people.. not to the ones who are pretending."
Liam: "You know what mom? Some people burn fat fast."