This week, Kiwis all around the country have been taking part in the Live Below The Line challenge, where they’ll eat on just $2.85 a day (the equivalent of the extreme poverty line) to raise funds for the fight against human trafficking.
According to official campaign statistics, human trafficking and exploitation has become one of the world’s fastest growing criminal industries, earning US$ 150 billion in illegal profits per year. Sadly, people living in extreme poverty become easy targets for traffickers, who promise jobs and opportunities for a better life.
TV star Petra Bagust has teamed up with Tearfund to support this important cause and completed her own Live Below The Line challenge last week. She shared her daily food diary with us – see how Petra ate on just $2.85 a day below.
MONDAY
Breakfast: Oats (40 cents)
Always a good start to the day, I’m feeling totally normal, mainly because nothing’s obviously happened yet. My body has no idea what’s about to hit it – my stomach has no idea what’s not about to hit it.
Lunch: 1/4 avocado (50 cents), two slices of homemade bread with marmite on one slice only (45 cents)
Eating really slowly actually helps me feel like I’ve got lots to eat – breaking off strips of bread and just taking my time.
Dinner: Roast carrots and potatos (60 cents worth) and two bites of tarakihi (70 cents)
$0.40 worth of oats for brekky, plus the $0.95 for lunch and a massive $1.30 for dinner – not to miss the splurge of $0.30 cents for a plain coffee and $0.07 per cuppa of black tea – I’m maxed out! It hasn’t been a bad first day – the haze of hunger did hover and the cloud on non-concentration tried to descend – but water throughout the day helped heaps.
Poverty can be very destructive on every level; health, well-being, hope, heart and mind. I am grateful that I live this week by choice and it’s such a brief period…I am so tremendously blessed. This week is not to make myself feel better about what I have – I really want to understand and appreciate everything.
Monday’s breakfast and lunch.
TUESDAY
Breakfast: Spinach crepe (95 cents) and cup of tea (7 cents)
Lunch: Lettuce and marmite sammie with no butter or mayo (70 cents), plus three cups of tea (21 cents)
I ate this in two sittings – taking my time again, making it last – eating slowly is really a great way to make it feel like more food.
Dinner: Oats (40 cents)
Dinner was soaked oats again, but this time was ‘on the run’ – I literally had to be out the door to present a Parenting Workshop and it was all there was in the fridge that was ready to GO! I drank water all night at the event to pad it out. Slightly under budget today!
Tuesday’s dinner was oats again.
WEDNESDAY
Breakfast: Porridge (50 cents)
Lunch: Leftovers from last night’s My Food Bag – soba noodles, carrots and half a green bean with a couple of Brazil nuts ($1.10)
My intention was to go for a quick run, before my other work meetings, this arvo – but to be perfectly honest, I wasn’t up for it. Energy levels were very low, so I slept for about 20 minutes instead. Felt much better – clearer head, re-energized.
Dinner: Salad with kumara & pea mash ($1.25)
Dinner was the vege part of a pretty regular dinner…Scrumptious! A nice glass of wine was mooted for dinner by my guests – I just laughed and poured myself another glass of water!
Wednesday’s breakfast and lunch.
THURSDAY
Breakfast: One fried egg (75 cents)
Lunch: Marmite toast (80 cents)
It is 2:30pm Thursday and I am SOOOO happy to be eating marmite toast right now. It’s been seven hours since my long-looked-forward-to, but delicious [breakfast] at 7:30am this morning.
I drank more than a litre of water during our two hour lunch meeting All that water did help me feel less hungry, but didn’t make up for not eating. Right now I am super grateful for how things usually are for me – I’ve always had enough food – more than enough.
Snack: Small banana (42 cents)
Dinner: Rice, potatoes and broccoli (85 cents)
I mainly feel like I’m going to faint when I stand up fast – so I’m either not drinking enough water (this would be hard to believe) or not getting enough sleep or… not eating enough… Hmm… Early night for me!
Thursday’s breakfast and lunch.
FRIDAY
I’m just excited about the thought of today – If I’m honest, I kind of wish there was an end time like 10pm, then I could have a little bit of a pig out after that – but no! I will resist the urge, and wait patiently for Saturday.
If you have been reading this blog this week and are wondering – then yes – I feel and see the irony (or hypocrisy) – I am pretending to be impoverished, to not have enough to eat, and I’m counting down the time, waiting for it to be over. It’s good to be in this tension – for starters, I am not taking anything for granted; from the choices I have, to the abundance of options around me.
Breakfast: Soaked oats with sesame and sunflower seeds (75 cents)
Lunch: Salad sammie ($1)
Dinner: Half a slice of take out pizza (62 cents)
One of the highlights of today was walking with my boys to school – holding hands, arms around each other – chatting and kicking conkers along the pavement. I was so truly thankful – we are safe, they have plenty, they are loved and secure and fed – they are blessed. They are mine and I can provide for them – and being New Zealand children, they are protected from so much that’s wrong in the world. It makes participating with other Kiwis in Live Below the Line real and relevant. It was food for my soul.
Thanks to anyone who’s done LBL this week or donated to support us. I want you to know that it makes a difference, really it does – even if you just help change the outcome for one life! One boy or one girl – WOW – that is something truly special. I’ve met some of these girls and boys only a few weeks ago on my travels with Tearfund, and friend, they are worth helping.
For more information about the challenge, Tearfund, or to donate, click here.
Friday’s lunch.
