30 Hour Famine

Some drinks I brought for work

30 Hour Famine is an annual fundraising effort for Christian relief organization WorldVision. By abstaining from food for 30 hours, participants raise awareness and experience hunger themselves. Right now, I'm currently in the middle of this famine--with less than 9 hours to go! A lot of people I know at SU have participated in this famine before or in similar fasts, either on campus or with youth groups at home, but I've never really done anything like this before, especially not on this scale. I remember doing a fast once during confirmation classes when I was in 7th or 7th grade, but it was very short comparably.

The famine started at noon yesterday. After my class, which ended at 11:35 a.m, I got in a quick meal--a chicken ceasar salad--before the famine started. Then I headed over to the chapel where we had a commissioning service. We all lit candles. As one of the deacons read out startling hunger statistics (like that a child dies of hunger every 10 seconds), we blew out our candles one-by-one to represent the lives being taken by hunger. Then, as a Bible passage was read, we re-lit our candles to represent the spreading of hope. There are also other events throughout the famine. During dinnertime yesterday, Alpha Phi Omega hosted a game night for fasters to distract us from the meal we were missing.

During the famine, I can drink juice and water. I've been drinking plenty of both. Of course, that doesn't mean I'm not feeling hungry, and I'm sure to feel hungrier by the end of the famine. I've heard from experienced fasters that lunchtime today and the last few hours will be the worst.

For me, trying to go to sleep last night was a really moving experience. As a middle class American, I've always had enough food to eat, and I've never truly gone to bed hungry. I struggled to fall and stay asleep last night as my stomach rumbled for food. This is not a fun experience, not even for one night, but there are people for whom going to bed hungry is a daily experience. It's their normal. Moments like that make me realize just how rich and fortunate I am as well as how much I need to be contributing to fighting world hunger.

This is another great example of college introducing me to do new things. I never thought I'd voluntarily take on a 30 hour famine, that's for sure!