Wednesday, April 5

Shucks

And yesterday after lunch when we threw away the leftover food we'd packed at the Mexican restaurant the night before, threw it away because it tasted insipid and we were too full and sure we'd never eat it again, and even though I'm trying to justify wastage of food, I know it's in vain because I shouldn't've wasted it, but that's exactly what I'm trying to say; that when we threw away that fajita burrito in the huge bin, I didn't know what else I could've done with it.

It was stuffed with vegetables, the burrito, ie. I'm vegetarian and even though I have no hang-ups about other people eating meat, I cannot get myself to eat it. I won't wean yet. It's tough to get a decent vegetarian meal but I'll pass because I'm okay with eating boiled and mashed potatoes even on a special dinner night (school lingo) so long as they're just potatoes and not accompanied by any sort of meat.

If I were home and my stomach was too full, I could've packed the food and given it to some hungry person on the street, on my way back home. Or I could've got it home and given it to a hungry dog or cow the next day.

There are no dogs here. No stray dogs.
No cows.
No hungry people by the roadside.

I know it's good that there aren't any hungry hobos.


But my question is
when I can't eat anymore and I've already made the mistake of ordering too much, what should I do with the food?


Because the buck doesn't stop here even though I'm here right now.
When I throw away food in the bin simply because it's excess, my thoughts travel back to the hungry kids I've met on the streets of Connaught Place in Delhi, and CG Road in Ahmedabad, and outside my paying guest accomodation in Marine Lines in Bombay.


It's just a question
because the situation
pinches me blue.

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