Man, I hate packing. Doesn't matter why, where or how long the trip, I never get it right. I either end up with tons of superfluous junk or run out of clean drawers.
Add to that the complication that I haven't had a lot of time to plan for this trip and here I am randomly shoving clothing bits into one bag and tech and files into another, hoping I get one right.
But there's one bag I packed early, carefully, with a lot of thought.
Have you packed your bags yet?
This Saturday, May 12th, is the National Association of Letter Carriers' 20th Annual Food Drive.
Thanks to the efforts of your proud, hardworking, union postal pals, you can, without busting a drop of sweat, help out hungry and food insecure families in your community. Just pack your bags.
Simply walk to your pantry and fill a bag or box with cans, bags and boxes of sealed, non-perishable foods and take them out to your mailbox. There, you're done. Your postal carrier will do all the heavy lifting, collecting your donation and taking it to your local food bank or feeding center. They bust the nut and you get the warm, fuzzy feeling. Talk about a deal.
Seriously, despite the stumbling improvements in the economy, hunger in America is real, and it's happening so close to you it would blow your mind. Best research suggests that one in seven families in this country will suffer food insecurity this year. Some of those families are your neighbors, your friends.
But it wouldn't matter a whit if they were strangers, even enemies. Know why? They're your countrymen. And, despite all the social Darwinist myths in which we're daily bathed, making sure each of us in this land bursting with chow gets a full belly is not only our responsibility, it is, to me, our highest calling, a way we can prove, in deeds, the greatness we claim for this country.
I could go on and on about hunger and the deep bonds we share, but, like I said, I've got to finish packing.
You, too, if you haven't already.
'Kay?