Clean Your Plate

As a child, most of us were told to clean our plates.  We were forced to sit at the table until all the food was gone and were told sorrowful stories of children in Africa who were starving.  As adults, it took us a while to realize that just because it is on our plate doesn't mean we have to eat it.  We blamed our hefty waste lines on our parents, and revolted, giving ourselves permission not to eat every last bite .  We began to experience pride when we were able to leave  something on our plate and vowed not to pass the guilt and poor health consequences along to our children.  

This new American standard is very apparent here where the garbage is divided into two cans, one for food waste and one for paper waste.  After every meal, the food waste container is bursting.  It becomes almost impossible not to notice how much food is being thrown away. Some nights, it would appear that as much food goes in the waste bucket as was eaten by the 12 people who are staying here.  In other words, enough food to feed roughly two Costa Rican families.  Not kids in Africa, but kids right next door.  It's eye opening to say the least.

All this said, I do think we were wise to abandon unhealthy habits. I would not advocate that we return to our guilt ridden days of youth when we ate every bite of what was in front of us without regard to our satiated bellies.  Instead, I propose a new next step.  Rather than forcing whatever is on our plates into our mouths, how about we only put on our plates, that which we will eat?