World at Lunch

Mr. Wolfe serves rice to the 3rd World
That brown stuff is water...
The 3rd World crammed in their corner
In the 2nd World, fruit was a luxury
Meanwhile, how were they feeling in the 1st World? "Not very good," said one guilt-ridden diner.

"For this food we are about to eat, let us be thankful."

That was not only the grace at lunch Monday, January 23 but the message of World at Lunch, a message that was hammered home by randomly dividing the student body and faculty into 1st, 2nd and 3rd Worlds.

The 1st World diners -- 31 of them -- ate a four-course meal of salad, soup, chicken entree and dessert with drinks, served by members of the school's Round Square Committee.

The 112 people in the 2nd World were given a bowl of flavoured rice, a piece of fruit and iced tea. They sat at tables and ate with a spoon.

The 3rd World consisted of 99 students and faculty who received a bowl of white rice and a glass of "unfiltered well water" (water with food colouring). They were crowded into one corner of the cafeteria, where they sat on the floor and ate with their fingers.

While the 1st World seemed to take forever to eat, the 2nd and 3rd Worlds finished quickly, leaving stomachs rumbling and students grumbling. There was even talk of revolution. One teacher reinforced the link between poverty and crime by stealing an orange from the 2nd World. However, she did share with her fellow poor...

At the end of the meal, Ms. Portelli announced that 5 pounds of wasted food had been collected from the 1st World.

"I know most of you are still hungry," she said, "but that's life. That's the reality for many people in the world."