Leftovers

You either love ‘em or hate ‘em. Some people love leftovers! To them, the cold pizza left over from last night’s social is even more delicious the second time around. Other people hate leftovers. They feel the restaurant doggy bag is just that- a bag meant only for the dog! In our house, my mom was the leftover queen of Pennsylvania. Not a speck of food was to be wasted! It was destined to be recycled as leftovers. Leftovers are the result of abundance, blessing and prosperity. They are the manifest overflow of what we could not consume. Needless to say, we live in a society that is filled with leftovers. Our garages are overflowing, our closets are stuffed and our refrigerators hold rotting food. We claim that we are “not rich”, but our leftovers testify against this claim.  If you have ever seen true scarcity, then you know that there are no leftovers there. Every crumb is valuable, every drop of water is precious, and every pair of shoes is treasured like gold. Those trapped in poverty dream about luxuries like soft pillows and real cooking utensils. We might see our extra stuff as worthless, but they look like riches to those who know no surpluses. My mom’s supper rule is a good life rule- all excess is to be used! We have become good at recycling our trash, but what if we became just as good at sharing our oversupplies? Leftovers have the potential to make the world a more beautiful place. It’s up to us to share them.  

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