One of my friends asked me an interesting question the other day about what I have learned since getting to Egypt. You may remember my list of things that I've experienced a few posts ago, but I thought maybe I should post something a little more serious, too.
Yesterday we were walking home from dinner and decided to stop by McDonald's to get a McFlurry, which is, for those of you who don't know what that is, an amazing combination of ice cream and Oreo cookies. After getting our dessert, we headed off in the direction of our apartment, just like normal.
By the time we were done with our dessert, we were about halfway through the park that's located right next to our flat. At this point three little girls came running up to us, wanting to get food from us. I didn't feel like it was right for me to give one of the girls my trash and kept hoping that if we just walked faster, they would realize that they weren't going to get anything. But she was more insistent than most of the kids who run up to foreigners to get money. In the end, I gave her a little bit of money and she gladly took it and ran back off into the park.
There are many, many people who live on hardly anything. I don't know how the man who sells bunches of bananas for 70 cents from his cart all day is able to feed his family. I don't know how all 80,000+ taxi cab drives are able to afford payments on their car loans AND feed their families.
In America do we consider going to McDonald's a luxury? I don't think so. I never, ever go to McDonald's when I'm back in the states. Why? Because, even though it's cheap, there's better food options for us. But in Egypt being able to afford McDonald's for a family of 4 isn't easy; it's a place for the elite. It's truly a luxury.
Thinking about these things has just reminded me again how nice we have things in America. We have been blessed beyond measure. Next time you're eating fast food, remember to thank God for the blessings in your life.
Have a good weekend!!!
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