It Could Be Worse : Day 847: 5 Minute Freewrite: Friday - Prompt: beans and rice

Kyle woke to a day that promised nothing but rain. He hated having to stay indoors. Roaming the neighborhood with his best friend looking for trouble was his daily delight. Of course, it helped being older than all the other kids.

"It's time for dinner, Kyle," he heard his mom yell from the front porch.

Kyle waived goodbye to his friend and joined his mom at the dinner table. "What are we having today?" he asked hesitantly. He already knew from the familiar aroma. He just wanted it repeated.

His mom replied in an almost whisper, "beans and rice."

Kyle grimaced, placed his head on the table, then banged it several times before raising it, all the while rolling his eyes.

"Now young man, be grateful unto the Lord for whatever he provides us," Mrs. Norman said harshly, before Kyle interrupted.

"But mom, why do we have to sacrifice? On Wednesday, we had pinto beans and rice; Thursday, lima beans and rice; Friday, butter beans and rice. Now, again today. Is there any meat or vegetables left?" Kyle lamented.

Mrs. Norman's tone softened now in an almost apologetic manner before continuing, "since the Depression, everyone has had to tighten their belts, Kyle. We've told you this a hundred times. It'll only be a few more days before we're able to get our weekly rations. Until then, we must make do."

On Monday afternoon, Mrs. Norman returned with her ration card. After school, Kyle took their card to the butcher to pick up their weekly meat ration. Following his mom's directions, he handed the card to the butcher and received their family's portion of meat. He noticed the long line of people waiting their turn.

Kyle stared at them, then looked down at the wrapped package in his hand. 4oz. of meat. It felt light. For the first time, he understood why he and his mom ate beans and rice for half of the week. A lump rose in his throat as he thought about the large family who lived next door.

Trading his afternoons of fun for an hour helping out at the butcher's shop, he was able to secure a few extra scraps of meat in exchange for his labor. Something to complement their beans and rice.

^{Image by Jan Gemerle from Unsplash}