An attitude of gratitude

There are a few cracks in the walls that are beginning to show, and if we don't do something about them, they will only continue to worsen. Don't worry, at least for the moment, they probably won't fall down, but there's not much time to consider how to fix the problem.

The metaphor of which I speak is the real problem of world hunger. For many years, some proponents have been crying the wind about the ever-present problem of world hunger, but only in recent months does it seem that hunger has become a concern on the world stage. At least there are signs that some conversation is taking place about how to address the shortage of basic staples for our ever-growing population.

One of the theories that has been advanced is that the growing concerns for bio-fuels, in an effort to be more conscious about the long-term effects of basing our entire economy on non-renewable resources, has some inherent danger built in. The efforts to grow crops for the sole use of the production of bio-fuels has resulted at least in some cases with a decreased amount of arable land that can be used for the growing of food.

Admittedly, the problem is much greater than just the issue of bio-fuels. Over the past number of years, there have been steady decreases in the subsidies offered to farmers and since the prices of grains and other commodities on the world markets have also declined, it is not economically feasible in many cases for food to be grown in vast quantities.

We can continue to debate the issue. The UN Food and Agricultural Organization's summit, which wrapped up in Rome yesterday, might actually have come up with some real solutions, but the challenge is not to identify the solutions; it's putting them into practice. In the meanwhile, the bigger picture is just beginning to emerge and the long-term effects are rather daunting.

Hunger due to rising prices is already a force to be dealt with in places such as China, India and Vietnam but there is news from Nigeria that a seminary which currently houses more than 500 priests-in-the-making may have to be closed in the coming weeks because there just isn't enough food to go around.

Some very few of us have the means and the power to make things happen on this front. For the vast majority though, we may hear the news and we may even experience it personally, but when all is said and done, there is very little that we can do other than to pray for those who are suffering. I for one have a renewed awareness of the abundance that surrounds me, and pray every day for an attitude of gratitude for all that we have been given.