How about a cold McDonald’s “Happy meal”
bought the night before? Or two packets
of crisps and a crisp sandwich? A
crisp sandwich is, in case you have never tried one, a layer of crisps sandwiched
in between two pieces of bread.
Now I don’t have any particular religion
myself. But I would like to respect the
temple by not bringing junk food inside.
Can you imagine having a conversation like this with the priest? “Do you believe that modern materialism is incompatible
with a virtuous life? Oh, Father
– How rude of me. Would you like a bite
of my Big Mac? Or a slurp of my
Coke?”
It might be better to opt for a tofu salad,
or a lentil curry, or anything more wholesome than a crisp sandwich.
People say that you should treat your body
as a temple. You should be very careful
about what you bring inside it.
Shouldn’t this be even more true of your children’s bodies? Since they are too young to make their own
lifestyle choices, isn’t it important for their parents to lead them down a
wholesome path?
I read an article this week about a head
teacher at a school in the UK who complained about the packed lunches
parents were giving to their children to eat at the school. Some of the worst lunches provided by parents
were a McDonald’s Happy meal (cold, bought the night before), and two packets
of crisps and a crisp sandwich. If this
had happened in a very poor part of the country, it would be more
understandable. The parents might have
other major problems, or be poorly educated themselves. But this happened in a relatively well off
part of England.
In the same week, I read an article about
the salt content of many snack foods in the UK.
The government has introduced a voluntary scheme to encourage food
manufacturers to lower the amount of salt they use in their snacks. But how effective is a voluntary scheme
really likely to be? For instance, a
scientific study found that one chocolate drink contained 16 times the
government’s recommended maximum amount of salt. The hot chocolate with marshmallows was
saltier than seawater.
The problem is that British people like to indulge
themselves. “Go on then. Just the one.
After all, I’ve worked hard today.
Okay, just one more.”
Maybe I can’t complain. I brought a Mister Donut’s doughnut into my
temple today, and am about to treat my cold with a Scotch whisky cure. Go on.
Just the one. After all, you’ve
been sick. You deserve it. Just one more. I’m British after all.
Vocabulary:
to munch – to chew or eat, especially whilst
making a noise
crisps – a thinly cut, fried and salted or
flavoured snack; potato chips (American English)
incompatible – of two things, so different
that they cannot exist together
virtuous – good or morally correct
a slurp – a large sucking sound made when
drinking or eating; the action of sucking something into your mouth
wholesome – good for you; clean and healthy
a packed lunch – a prepared lunch, packed
into a container such as a tub
well off - rich
to indulge oneself – to allow oneself to
enjoy the pleasure of something
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