Brussells Sprouts

Well, another Thanksgiving has come & gone, and our family did the traditional Brussel Sprout toast. Well, not everyone. Not even the guy who invented it, actually, but he couldn't eat because of surgery. Other people are just, well, you know... But I digress... For those who don't know, our newish, wierdish, Thanksgiving tradition involves eating 3 Brussels Sprouts each. My brother started it a few years ago, because he doesn't like Brussels Sprouts, and is thankful that he doesn't have to eat them the rest of the year. Not only is this rather amusing, it has forced us to come up with clever ways to prepare the sprouts so that they actually taste good! (Yes, it is possible.) But even this misses the point. There are millions of people who go hungry every day, even in our 1st world industrialized nation. They don't get to choose what to to eat or not. They don't have the option of turning down that less savory side dish out of the 10 or so available. I don't want to give you the old "there are starving children in Africa" line (tho there are), but I would like you to keep it in mind over the holiday season. Food banks have less stock available, even as the need goes up. So, perhaps you will make a donation. Perhaps you can't afford to, but will be more grateful for what you do have. Perhaps when Granny offers you yet another helping of her slimey glazed carrots, limp green beans, or lumpy gravy, you will smile graciously, and make a silent toast to the Brussels Sprouts Gods, thanking them for the food available, the dog under the table who eats scraps, and the fortune that brought you to the position of such a wonderful dilemma.