A Month of Rice and Beans with the Haaks

I've loved hearing people's responses as they finished out the month -- especially some of the younger participants. Below is another guest post from the Haak family based on their experiences from the month. You can read more about it at their blog: http://haakinitup.blogspot.com/

Quotes from my family courtesy of their month-long rice and beans "torture."


"What gross thing are you making for dinner tonight?"


"Open mouth. Put food in. Close mouth....yes, you do have to chew it."


"Mommy, thish is just too weird!"


"Do we really have to be Solitaire?" (translated..do we have to stand in solidarity?)


"Wow mom! This one actually tastes good!! Do kids in Africa get this one?"


"Can we just eat this one for the rest of the month?"

(Day 3 of 31) "Is the month over yet? I need pizza."

(In reference to the one above) "Mom, I've had this one a lot. Do you have another kind?" (speaking of rice)

"Can't we just send them money, so they can buy something that tastes better?"

"Next month, can we eat hot dogs every night?"

I am laughing and groaning as I remember and write. I've never had more complaints and near rebellion at dinner time by my children as I have this month. But, I am also really excited that we did discover some new recipes that Everyone really liked! Yes, we had a few gagging sessions and "if you throw that up, you'll clean it up!" "talks" at the table. My 3 year old (who amazingly has complained the least) has gone to bed with very little to eat more nights than I can count. Yet, he has shown the most excitement at the prospect of sending money to other children.

I pray my children will have learned something from this whole exercise...most of all thankfulness and an awareness of others around them.

If LAHASH does this again next year, we'll be right there with them.

I think we'll celebrate with Pizza and Cake when the month is at end.

Art fun with the Mains!

This fun project arrived at the office for us this week!

Rice and Beans with the Mains

Below is an update from the Main family.

March is Beans & Rice Month! Our friends at Lahash put together an information video and its posted on youtube if you'd like to check it out. Also, it's also never too late to join... in any variance that works best for your family.

In January, our family discussed how we would "flesh out" beans & rice month. One of our decisions was to add a "Celebration meal" each week in which one of the children would chose a meal of their pleasure. Okay, so this week Josiah got to choose. He thought and thought and decided on (drum roll, please)... SUSHI! Do you know what sushi is? Vinegared Rice... with stuff in it or on it. We get one meal where we don't have to eat beans and rice and he picks RICE. Hysterical. Sooo... on Saturday we pulled out our seaweed paper and made us some yummy sushi rolls. They were gooooood! Wanna hear more about our R&B journey? I'll add a day-by-day thought at the end.

Day 1: Josiah (5) "It's here, its here! Hey guys, Beans and Rice month is here!" Absolute excitement permeated our home!

Day 2: JoyAnna (3): "Wait! But Rice & Beans month was YESTERDAY!" And so begins our little girl's understanding of how long a month really is...

Day 3: I was feeling the boa constriction of kitchen bondage and aching for convenience foods.

Day 4: Enjoyed the glorious discovery of bean & rice BURGERS! Yum-a-licous and wonderfully portable.

Day 5: Decided to add bananas to the diet of our younger two especially in favor of their intestinal health.

Day 6: Finding simplicity to be sobering... and somewhat freeing. Mostly just sobering.

Day 7: Thankful for the crock pot. It works while we sleep. It works while we worship. Annnd it works in the garage where I don't have to smell it all day. Oh, what a glorious invention!

Day 8: One of our family variations for the month is that we've included bread making and the ingredients necessary to accomplish this. Daniel asked if there was any "dessert" tonight. Hmmmm....toast & honey? Sure! Oh, I wish you could have seen the DELIGHT in their faces.

Day 9: JoyAnna (3): "I know it's Rice & Beans month today because Rice & Beans month is a LONG time." She's catching on! And in the next breath: "When we eat rice today can we have honey on it?" Ah, we've discovered something over here.

Day 10: John Z (8) misses Cheerios, Daniel (7) longs for breakfast food of ALL varieties, Josiah (5) & JoyAnna (3) ache for their beloved “treat bowl.” And good ‘ol Bryan was too busy with a stomach virus today to care much about food.

Day 11: I’m hurting for flavored coffee creamer. Just the creamer. Even the most lenient coffee snob would be disgusted by my coffee choices- off-brand, decaf, instant granules or that fake burnt dandelion stuff. I only drink the coffee for the creamer…and, oh how I miss my comfort in a cup!

Day 12: “Your house is not the place to have the munchies in right now.” –Aunt Johnna during her Spring Break visit

Day 13: Self induced kitchen bondage by making elaborate bean dishes and homemade naan (bread is on our approved list). I killed the heart of simplicity today. I think there’s a lesson in here for me. ("Better is a dry morsel and quietness with it than a house full of feasting with strife." - Pvb. 17:1)

Day 14: We thoroughly enjoyed our weekly Celebration Meal (John Z. chose breakfast food) & Aunt Johnna snacks. Before this month we just expected variety… now it seems that we completely delight in it.

Day 15: Okay, it’s getting HARD to continue this journey. Tonight we had to reign in our hearts and minds and remember that we’re CHOOSING to to do this… for a purpose bigger than ourselves. Oh, God have mercy!

Day 16: Grocery shopping analysis: Before: 1 hour, overflowing cart, at least 6 impulse buys, average $152 each week. Today: ½ hour, 1/3 filled cart, no impulse buys, $79. Wow!

PHOTOS:

1. John Z. enjoying rice & toasted cumin with lentils

2. Josiah delighting in his plate-o-sushi rolls

Bored with Rice and Beans?

Following is a guest post from Jim Anderson, a Rice and Beans participant from Portland, Oregon.

Thoughts while walking: do children who eat only beans and rice become bored by that diet? Do they complain about not having more variety, meat once a day or more, dessert, eggs and toast, and no repeats of the same meal for a week at least, and snacks between meals? I'm guessing they don't complain, that they're satisfied and happy when that solid meal has taken away the hunger pangs for a while. In fact, they may not even know about the possibility of variety unless maybe sometime special like a wedding or funeral. But then, maybe those kids didn't get in on those special treats anyway.

In Botswana, I attended a San funeral, standing on the outskirts of the group in a compound where the deceased man had lived, merely observing until invited to sit in the inner circle (next to the chief, no less, on a up-turned 20-litre bucket). When it was time to eat the food cooking in blackened pots over an open fire, I accepted a steaming cup of milky tea and later, a bowl with strips of meat over samp and rice. I had eaten a little from that bowl when my friend, a Dutch missionary, suggested I needn't eat it all, and that he would give what was left to the children because "they won't feed the kids." In a moment, half a dozen very thin, very hungry children were diving into the remains of my lunch.

A San funeral in Ghanzi, Botswana.

Pots will provide funeral food.

I thought about all of that as I walked, about how easy it is to get bored with eating rice and beans, knowing the incredible variety available to me, supermarkets, hundreds of enticing restaurants, a farmers' market overflowing with variety, cupboards at home which require care lest food packages fall when opened, Ben and Jerry's in the freezer, Daves's Killer Bread as well--unlimited and taken-for-granted variety until you've agreed to limit yourself to only beans and rice.

I suppose quite a few will say, "My, how we are blessed!" just like they say we've got the finest health care in the world and the finest agricultural system and all of that finest stuff that leaves us proud of the plethora that confronts us all the time. But as I walked, I wondered if we're so blessed by that surfeit of possibility. Why then the "hunger" for more variety--"Which restaurant tonight--let's try a new one!"--the lack of satisfaction and serenity, the gnawing desire for more for ourselves?

Not far, that desire, from the puzzling actions of those rich folks who will spend millions to bribe government people to protect their bonuses. You'd think a hundred million would be enough so that they might say, "I'm satisfied!" Doesn't happen often, does it? But neither does it happen often enough that we are willing to forgo the lesser luxuries we've "earned" for ourselves.

By the way, the poor folks who eat rice and beans gladly don't have to exercise the "discipline of simplicity.." I was wondering as I walked whether that's a blessing or a curse for them, or is it we who are cursed when luxury that surrounds us makes us unhappy with the simplicity of rice and beans, and makes necessary exercising "discipline," that is, recognizing the sinfulness of excess? Might it be I who hears the "curse" of Jesus upon those who store up much and revel in their luxury, "You fool!"

Meanwhile, I smell the beans cooking in the kitchen, to become baked beans eventually. About ten more days until I can get at that Ben and Jerry's and all the other good stuff that hasn't been eaten since March 1. What will I have learned from a month of rice-and-beans? Remains to be seen what may be the on-going change, if any.

Rice and Beans for a Mzungu in Tanzania

Reflections from Leisha Adams (Leisha is the Lahash Sponsorship Director and resides in Tanzania. You can visit her blog at http://leishainafrica.blogspot.com/)

At the beginning of the month, walk to the market to purchase the rice, beans, cooking oil, charcoal and kerosene. Spend several minutes in greetings with the owner of the booth of your preference, then buy several kilos of rice and several kilos of beans and a few litres of cooking oil. Walk to another shop to purchase a litre of kerosene, given in an abandoned water bottle. Walk to another shop to purchase a large bag of charcoal. Return home and store the food where cockroaches, lizards, and mice will not have access. Purchase carrots, onions, tomatoes, and green peppers from the local produce stand in the days before cooking.

On the day of the meal, measure the beans into a wide, flat basket and remove debris. Wash the beans thoroughly, and put in a large pot. Fill pot to the brim with water. Fill the charcoal burner with charcoal, and use small kindling to get a good, hot fire among the coals. Place the pot of beans on the burner. Bring to boil, and leave cooking until beans are soft. Drain off and reserve remaining water. Wash and chop up onions, carrots, green peppers, and grate tomatoes. Fry some onions in oil with the grated tomatoes and diced carrots and peppers. Leave cooking until soft, then add the beans, and cook for approximately ten minutes. Add salt and the reserved “bean water”. Cook for another several minutes until the water thickens into a kind of “soup”.

Measure the rice into the wide, flat basket. Pick out the small rocks, twigs, and bad grains. Pour the rice into a basin of water and wash thoroughly, then pull the rice out of the water by the handful, carefully pressing the water out of each handful. Place the rice in a pot with fresh water and a little oil. Fill the cooker with kerosene and raise the wicks. Light a match and hold to each of the eight kerosene-soaked wicks. Replace the cooking platform over the flame and place the pot of rice on the burner. Stir the rice occasionally until the grains start to absorb water, then cover and leave to cook until the rice has absorbed all of the water.

Move the beans and rice into serving dishes and carry to the table, where the cook is expected to pray for a blessing on the food. Load a plate with a heaping serving of rice, then cover the rice with the soup from the beans, then spoon the beans and veg over the rice.

If your appetite for the traditional “wali na maharage” is somewhat abated, a generous splash of Tabasco or local “pili pili” spice will give you a little different flavor and renew your enthusiasm for the national food of Tanzania.

Simplicity

Below are guest reflections from Cherish who is a volunteer part of the Rice and Beans team.


SIMPLICITY: Those of us who live in wealthier nations often eat for pleasure and eat in excess. We are going to eat a nutritious and simple meal to give up on wasteful consumption.

I was excited to return to diet similar to what I grew used to while living as a Peace Corps volunteer in Mali, West Africa. Eating simply was the way of life and I couldn't imagine not being satisfied with what my host family worked for hours to fix in a huge kettle over a wood fire and were gracious enough to share with me day after day. Food was essential, but manners, conversation and blessings were the most important components of meals. Visiting the Philippines this winter reminded me of the joy of simple, communal meals. I hope that while I return to the simplicity I learned in Mali and The Philippines, I can focus my life here in America away from food and towards those I love, the world around me and my many blessings.

Tips from the Holcombs!

Week two of rice and beans at the Holcomb house! We were fortunate enough to test out this diet in December, so we have had a head start on ways to make it simpler to sustain. Here are some of our top tips to share with you:

1. Breakfast- eat it! I usually get really hungry around 10:30 am when I am waiting for my lunch of rice and beans, but breakfast helps soothe the rumbling in my stomach. We prefer a bowl of rice with cinnamon, sugar and raisins heated up with milk. Delicious, and not a bad smell to start the day. If you need a little more protein to get you through to lunch, try making Ful, a middle eastern bean dish served at breakfast.
   Ful Instructions: Take three cups of cooked kidney beans and blend them thoroughly in your food processor. Add 3 tablespoons of sesame oil and 2 teaspoons of cumin. Mix in completely. After blended, add chopped pieces of onion and tomato. Add salt to taste. Eat hot or cold. Yum.
   
   
2. Rinse your beans. Really, this will make a huge difference in your ability to digest them and avoid, well, gas. Rinse them thoroughly after being soaked, and throw out the soaking water. After cooking them, rinse them again and throw out the cooking water before adding vegetables, etc. With this strategy, we have eliminated the problem.
   
   
3. Make enough for tomorrow. Our rhythm of rice and beans is to make a large meal at dinner with enough for leftovers to have rice left for breakfast and servings to take to work for lunch the next day. Enjoy your leftovers, and cook another large dinner that night. You end up cooking once per day, but it feels like you have more variety without a lot of extra time.
   
   
4. Share with friends. Meals are meant to be shared, and simple meals are even better in good company. Invite people over. It is great to share suggestions with fellow participants and encourage each other along the way. We have found that those who are not participating in the event still enjoy experiencing the meal with us, and it makes for great table conversation.

Eating Rice and Beans with the Haaks

This is a reprint of a post from last week at the Haaks blog. They've graciously agreed to let us repost it here. Visit them at their blog to see how their journey continues.

So we decided to join in the Eat Beans and Rice for a Month challenge, and tonight was the first night. Having 4 children makes it a bit more complicated in the taste bud arena. I'll get to that in a moment.

We are joining for several reasons,

1. We support in prayer the Schilperoorts (sp?). We have a passion for Africa and for the work they are doing there.

2. We want to educate our children about other countries and cultures and expose them to different ways of life.

3.We want to join our brothers and sisters in Jesus and eat like them for a month.

4. It'll save a lot of money and we want to donate it to Lahash International.

You can view the main blog at http://www.eatriceandbeans.com/

Everyone did better than expected. We started out by showing the kids a map of Africa and then showed them several other countries where rice and beans are a main staple. I asked them what animals are found in Africa. I got everything from giraffes, to bulls, to scorpions, to lions and so on. I was surprised at what they acctually knew.

Then I dropped "the bomb." "They even eat it for breakfast, lunch and dinner!" Jaws dropped, and the look of incredulation was hilarious. You'd have thought I'd told them they eat slugs 3 times a day.

I was proud of them though. Everyone but Good Lookin' ate everything in their bowl. Nater Mater of course liked it. He loves rice and beans. Then again, he'll eat just about anything...including bugs off the floor.

I also served cheese quesedillas with their meal (except Mr. Smiley who can't have cheese. He ate a half a pbj). I figured they couldn't go completely hungry and the only rule was they had to take at least one bite. A rule at our house is, "try it before you don't like it." What got Precious Jewel and Mr. Smiley to eat all theirs was a promise of a piece of Valentine's candy after their meal. A little bribery goes a long way.
It will be interesting to see how the rest of the month goes.

Day 2 brought more complaints. Dear Precious Jewel asked if God could make everyone else in the world rich like us so that we could stop having to know what it was like for them. I told her that God doesnt' work that way. He gives us opportunities to share in each other's suffering. Eating rice and beans for supper for a month isnt true suffering. But on her little scale, it's apparently intense suffering. I promised they could each make a sandwich if they ate what was in their bowl.

Solidarity

SOLIDARITY: We are standing with our brothers and sisters in East Africa who live on limited incomes and who can only afford simple meals like Rice & Beans.

Solidarity is an immensely powerful aspect of Rice and Beans Month. It's a tangible way to unite and create community across the expanse of miles, cultures and time zones. It allows me a small way from my kitchen in Portland to connect with other participants such as the Main's in Illinois as well as the Lahash partners in East Africa.

I used to volunteer at the Ronald McDonald House here in Portland. Once a month for several years I would grab a group and go cook at the house for the families staying there while their children were treated for serious illnesses and injuries. We spent the time filling the house with laughter, conversation and sometimes tears in addition to food. I was always amazed at the connections that occurred over meals with people I usually had very little in common with. It was always a privilege to be allowed to glimpse into their lives and come alongside their struggles for even a moment.

It's this reason that I was particularly drawn to Rice and Beans Month. It's not just a campaign, but is a way for each of us to tangibly connect with a larger community. To connect and participate in something we say we care about. At the end of the month, what I've given up will go to providing much needed nutritional food to kids on the other side of the world.

This is why I'm involved in Rice and Beans Month.

We've created a map of the pictures we've received from participants. Take a look and make sure to send your pictures to us at info@eatriceandbeans.com, we'd love to include them!

Thoughts from Eric

Below is a repost that Eric Chapman posted on his blog Friday and graciously agreed to have let us repost.

The Final Days

Woke up this morning realizing that there were only three full days left till I enter Rice & Beans month. (Check out the link above) Yes, I Eric Chapman will spend the month of March eating Rice & Beans and trying to stay away from the Dr. Pepper. You ask...why? Well I have 29 good reasons. There are 29 children at Amazing Grace Children's Home who eat rice & beans each and everyday. Oh they have vegetables, what they can grow. Meat is available but expensive. They make due with what they can afford. The awesome thing is, they don't complain. They know that what little they have is more than most have. I admire them and they humble me.

The neat thing about this March is that the money we save on groceries will go to help our missions in East Africa. Every penny we save is more for our brothers and sisters in East Africa.

So, what am I giving up? HA! Dr. Pepper, candy, chips, cookies, meat, chicken.....AAAAARRRGHHHH!!! LOL! If I don't lose weight then there is something wrong with me.

I ask for prayers that I don't go insane during the month of March (ohhh the temptations of foooood). I ask for prayers that we raise huge amounts of money for our missions in East Africa. Finally, prayers for the children of Amazing Grace, St. Batholomew's, Nambia House, and Grace and Healing Ministries.

Life Lessons from Legumes

Life lessons from legumes

Dan and Erin Holcomb practice a week of Rice & Beans

It's been exciting to see the momentum gaining during the past couple months! My wife and I tried out a test week of rice and beans in December. We learned some pretty valuable lessons about life during the week and are eager to experience the full month of the meals.

The first thing we were aware of was how simple meals can be extremely satisfying. In the United States we are influenced by a barrage of consumerism in our lives that tells us that we should be unsatisfied and keep "upgrading." The apostle Paul writes that "godliness with contentment is great gain," and that "if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that." The meals were nutritious and weren't full of processed ingredients, so our bodies felt healthy through the week.

We also sensed a oneness with our vulnerable brothers and sisters through the week. Each bite meant a connection and a choice to sacrifice for those in need. During the day when I would get hungry and think about my next meal, I'd think about the kids in East Africa. When John the Baptizer was announcing the Kingdom of God, he told the crowd, "The man with two tunics should share with him who has none, and the one who has food should do the same." It felt good to use the extra food money we saved in order to share with others.

Finally, we found that eating simple meals left us with significantly less garbage at the end of the week. We bought bulk beans and rice and cooked with fresh vegetables, so our trash cans were a quarter-full and our recycle box was nearly empty! As a steward of God's creation it was refreshing to be less wasteful for the week.

From Rice & Beans Month Blog

You can check out a video of our week on this YouTube page

Give us this day our daily bread

Give us this day our daily bread. I've never prayed this prayer and wondered if God was going to provide me with enough to eat today. I doubt any of us have. But across East Africa that prayer often reflects a very real need. While spending time at Amazing Grace Children's Home in Uganda, I heard a very similar prayer offered up by one of the kids. As she prayed in the passionate style that I have only experienced in East Africa, she reminded God of their sparse and simple meals and asked Him to provide them with a balanced diet. Coming from a culture of stocked pantries and rich desserts, the raw reality of her prayer struck a deep chord. That is why I'm excited that this coming March, we all have the chance to respond in a meaningful way to help answer the prayers of these kids. Lahash is inviting everyone (me, you, your family, your friends...) to join us in eating Rice and Beans for a whole month. Our goal with this event is to Simplify our diets and stand in Solidarity with our brothers and sisters, in order to Share more of our resources. At the end of the month, the money that you saved by eating this inexpensive, nutritious diet will be given to the kids living in our East African partnerships to improve their diets!

This is a big challenge to consider, and it is easy to say, "Great idea! You go for it, but I could never do that! I mean seriously... rice and beans? a whole month?" But if we are honest with ourselves, we could do it, we're really just saying we wouldn't do it. For every person, the way you take on this challenge will look a little different. In our family, I'm planning to eat rice and beans for 3 meals every day. Abbe (my wife and a nursing mother), and Asher (my sometimes picky two-year-old son) will eat it for dinner most nights, but not breakfast and lunch. I'm sure Lucy (my new-born daughter) would do it, but she's not eating solid food yet. So we really want to encourage you to join us for the month in whatever way you can. Please don't miss out by saying, "Well, I just couldn't do that." Invite a friend to join you, share recipes, eat rice and beans, and tell us your story! For more information, videos and recipes, go to www.EatRiceAndBeans.com

- Casey Schilperoort

Portland, OR