February Challenge

My family is big on Groundhog Day, mostly due to Bill Murray and his classic movie about February 2nd. We try to watch it every year. If you haven't seen it, please do. You'll finish with a strange urge to quote French poetry, play jazz piano, and ice sculpt. You'll also never look at your toaster the same way again.

It's also Black History month. Special shout out to my girls rockin the natural hair, btw. Black History is rich and powerful stuff. I grew up on homemade mac and cheese soul food, and got to celebrate Black History in 2nd grade by singing I Believe I Can Fly for our boy Michael. We also put on a history play for the parents. Being the only white girl in the class, I think I made my teacher a little uncomfortable when I auditioned to be Harriet Tubman. Ignorance is bliss when you're 8 years old.

Anyway, we're in a month that's meant to look at the past, and look at our present. Rich history mixed with seize the day mentalities. 

So let's mix it a little further. 

Poverty has been on my mind a lot lately. Maybe because I just got back from Peru, maybe because I'm headed to Calcutta soon. Maybe because our own country still hasn't gotten it together. (Side article on poverty and the Superbowl http://www.thenation.com/blog/172627/blackout-bowl-or-most-depressing-super-bowl-column-youll-read)

I understand the frustration. We've all seen the commercials and heart-breaking movies and depressing articles. Some of us turn it all off because we don't want to know. Others feel so overly informed we stop listening because feeling helpless in the face of so many problems sucks. 

I'm big on awareness raising, and it's something I struggle with. Is my goal to just depress people? As much as I loved The Vagina Monologues, A Memory, A Monologue, A Rant and a Prayer, Any One of Us, etc. I couldn't help feeling that I trapped the audience, beat them over the head with a baseball bat and then sent them back into the world with nothing but a headache. So, here's my remedy. 

Starve for a while. 

I'm not kidding. This is a challenge. This is for all the people that are sick of the way things are but don't know how to change it. 

Starve for a day. 

It's not a new concept. Lent and Ramadan have been around for a good long while. Pretty much every religion advocates it. Fasting cleanses the body, cleanses the soul, and even if it doesn't change the world, it changes you. 

So here's my challenge. Have a bellyache for a day on purpose. Pick a day to watch those movies and read those articles you have been putting off, and do it while skipping breakfast. Immerse yourself in the facts for the day and take empathy to a whole new level. Learn, absorb, identify yourself with people all over the world and send out good vibes while you do it. I promise you won't regret it. 

If this is a new concept, check out http://www.30hourfamine.org/ It's a cool program built for high school students, but you can take some info and ideas from it. Another favorite of mine is http://freerice.com/#/english-vocabulary/1457.

Fasting is kind of like volunteering. You take the focus off you for a day and do something that isn't necessarily in your comfort zone. 

If going totally without food scares the bejeezus out of you, set your own rules. Do one meal at a time. Pick a day when you have time to yourself. When you get hungry, drink some hot tea or warm milk with some sugar thrown in. Choose a day and read books about or by your heroes. Read up on world events. Pray. Memorize your favorite quote, the one you want to have in your head in case you are ever trapped on a deserted island and need some inspiration to get you through. Being hungry and productive at the same time is doubly impressive. 

Speaking from experience, fasting with purpose can change your life. Fasting and NOT making an effort to focus on bettering yourself or helping others is a complete waste of time and not fun. Going hungry when your heart isn't in it makes you bitter and mean, trust me. 

I know it doesn't make sense. I'm sure the Catholics and the Muslims can explain it much better than I can, why fasting = changing the world. All I'm saying is that if you want to take a more active approach, if you want to understand what's going on in the world and become a part of it, this is definitely a good way to go. Challenge yourself, whether it's a meal, a day, two days, or however you want to do it. I'd love to hear how it goes.