How many people does it take to make one bowl of porridge?
Let’s start with my recipe:
¼ cup wheat-free oats
¾ cup hazelnut & coconut milk
1 apple
a pinch of cinnamon
Combine oats and milk, place in fridge to soak overnight (this makes the
porridge more digestible). Grate in apple, add cinnamon and simmer for 10
minutes.
Now, back to the question.
Somewhere out there is a farmer (or farmers) who planted, tended to, and
harvested the oat crop. Then there are people who processed and packed the oats
and those who transported them to my local grocery store. It’s fairly safe to
assume that the milk, apple and cinnamon were all grown, harvested, processed,
packed and transported by different people. Then there are the owners and staff
of my local grocery store.
But wait!
All these people couldn’t have done what they did without the families
who raised them, teachers who taught them as children, and mentors who trained
them in their occupations. And what about the people who designed, produced and
shipped the stove, saucepan and spoon? And those who produce and bottle the gas
that fuels the stove?
I could keep going but am sure you get the picture by now. It would
not be far fetched to say that at least 100 people, most of whom I have never
met, have worked to create this seemingly simple breakfast I’m enjoying his
morning. Pondering this while devouring my porridge made it taste a whole lot better!
I am so grateful for all the people who have chosen a career that I am not
interested in, which allows me to live the life I have chosen. By buying and
cooking porridge I am supporting them while they live the lives they have
chosen.
When the spiritual teachers say that we are all connected, it’s not
some hippy, ethereal, hard to fathom concept. It’s a real, concrete and
practical hard fact. As are the dishes I now have to wash!
Enjoy your day :)
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