We were busy today. The food bank is supposed to open at 1.00pm but by the time I arrived, which was about five minutes before then, the volunteers were already hard at it, asking people about their needs and then packing bags for them.
I talk to food bank users as I would talk to anyone else, bad jokes and all. I know that it can be a very difficult period for people, having to admit they literally haven’t got enough food with which to feed themselves, but I have to be me. It’s not very difficult really. “Would you prefer pasta or rice?” Everyone I’ve seen so far says rice. Weirdly, you might think, I was well into my twenties, maybe even my thirties, before I knew what pasta was. Everyone knows these days, not least because it’s so versatile.
The store cupboard was well-filled to start with. It just goes to show how generous the public can be. One person asked whether we had any corned beef, out of interest more than anything else. I knew we did so they got a tin in their allocation. They were expecting some economy non name brand but I managed to slip in a tin of Prince’s, which is a favourite of mine.
As in previous weeks, everyone is so grateful for what they get and for our efforts. I was completely floored when I was asked why I did volunteered to do it. “It’s for the money,” I joked to start with. The best I could come up with was I wanted to do something useful, to help people. When I’d said it, I felt such a fraud. I’m giving up around four hours a week, including travel; that’s all. I feel embarrassed if I feel I’m inadvertently bigging myself up.
I’ve had a bit of a change of heart about people who just do a once a year collection for Christmas. To be honest, I was a bit pissed-off about it because food poverty is not just or Christmas and once the festive stuff is out of the way, the struggle carries on. Christ, I’ve been guilty of that. “Here’s a box of stuff I’ve put together so that some poor kid can at least have a present and some chocolates. Now, excuse me, I must be off because the pub’s open.” I now see the Christmas stuff as being an extension of what the food banks do all year round. It’s a good thing.
I left the food bank and called in our local Asda on the way home to do a small shop. The first person I met, dressed up in his Asda uniform, was a colleague from a nearby food bank. He saw my T shirt and said, “I’ve got one like that!” Without going into details, the area in which he works is even poorer than the one we cover. He told me that the utility bills are crippling people’s incomes already and that his bank was as busy as he has ever seen it. With Christmas just a matter of weeks away, I fear the coming weeks will be very difficult.
I had to tell the manager that I will have to skip a coming session because of a medical appointment. I felt guilty about that, too. I was about to explain that it was a Very Important Appointment when the manager thanked me for telling them.
I’m really into it now and it makes me happy and sad. Figure that one out.
