Just over a week ago I completed the ‘Live Below the Line’ Challenge where I chose to live for five days on £5 to raise money for Malaria No More and also to try and gain a little understanding as to how people living in poverty cope on a day-to-day basis.
I had some concerns when I started this challenge (not least of which was that I was probably going to be quite hungry…); I worried that this was a bit of a holiday-in-poverty for nice privileged people to feel as though they’re making a difference.
It’s a fair criticism, given that I celebrated the end of my time ‘Living Below the Line’ with an £80 train ticket to visit my partner and a lovely meal at an Italian restaurant, however I feel as though this week has made me look at a lot of things in a completely different light.
As a young woman in today’s society (a phrase I’m loath to write but can’t find an alternative), I have always scrutinized my food for it’s fat contact and claimed health benefits. I generally eat it anyway because, hell, life’s short and cheesey chips are a thing. However, I found that, when living on a very small amount of money, the way in which I looked at food and the reasons for scrutinizing each item changed significantly.
A few changed perspectives from this week:
SHOPPING:
Suddenly, shopping was all about finding the highest number of ‘good’ calories as possible for my money. The low-fat, low-cal, high protein whole foods I would normally drop in my basket without a second thought were off the menu this week.
It really made me think about how difficult it must be to get the nutrition your body needs when 500g of white pasta costs 30p but a single red pepper costs about twice this.
I thought a lot about the people who aren’t just shopping for themselves; I can’t imagine what kind of stress a person must go for when trying to feed their children well on such a pitiful budget. I selfishly hope that I am never ever in that situation.
PREPARATION:
Sometimes I am lazy. Sometimes I get home from work and veg out in front of a film and forget to make a pack lunch for the following day. I did not have that option this week; if I didn’t make my lunch then I would be hungry as my budget certainly didn’t allow for a £4 panini from Costa.
I’m not saying it’s a crime to spend a sunny Friday lunch time sat in a pub garden with a halloumi sandwich, but I do think I will be far more careful in the future to distinguish between being ‘too tired’ to make my pack lunches and ‘not being bothered’.
COOKING:
I am lucky because I know how to cook meals for myself. My grandmother baked with me when I was little, for some reason I was taught to make macaroni cheese at school, and my dad is a great cook who was kind enough to find new and interesting ways to feed his two daughters when they decided to become awkward vegetarians.
Not everyone is as lucky as me. Not everyone has had an upbringing that introduces the idea of cooking interesting, nutritious and satisfying food from scratch.
WORK:
Trying to concentrate at work is an awful lot harder when you’re thinking about food and lunch is still an hour way. It’s also quite embarrassing to be sat in a meeting with your stomach making strange noises because it’s 4pm and your body wants its afternoon biscuit.
When I was at school, my parents gave me £10 a week to buy school lunches, and even then I would normally take a snack with me because £2 didn’t go very far. It must be tough to be at school, trying to concentrate and being hungry. And it must be hard to be a parent who can’t do anything about this.
There has been a bit of an uproar in the UK in the wake of an election that has left the poor and the vulnerable feeling as though their voices have not been heard.
Under the now re-elected government, the number of food banks rose significantly (from about 60 to over 400) as did the number of people needing to use them.
I have quite a lot more to say about the direction in which I fear our country is headed but I don’t think this is the right post to do it.
I’ll end by saying that I am so grateful for being as lucky as I am, but I recognise that, whilst my situation is likely to get worse in the next five years, it is the people living below the line, the people without access or knowledge, the people who are already struggling, who are really going to feel the effects and it’s going to happen sooner rather than later.
With this in mind, please be mindful of others and, if you are at all able, please look into helping out your local food bank by donating a couple of bits and pieces. Often food banks require things you might not consider like sanitary products, toilet roll, baby food – if you check their websites, they usually have lists of things they need most.
The Selfie Revolution 