Hungry Minds...Thirsty Souls

Today, I read "Hungry Minds: Tales from a Chelsea Soup Kitchen" by Ian Frazier. This was an article written in the New Yorker in 2008. I found it to be a very moving and inspirational piece. I thought the description of the church itself was very beautiful and vivid: "It has a high, arched cathedral ceiling supported by cylindrical pillars that rise to Tuscan-style groined arches. Natural light comes into the nave through tall and narrow stained glass window whose age and artistry make them rarities in themselves" (page 1). I could easily visualize the church based on the impressive descriptions by Frazier. I also really liked the imagery in the description of the church after it caught fire: "That night, the church is blackened, dripping, open to the sky" (page 5). I found it sad that these people visiting the soup kitchen have to face the cold NYC air, homeless; the descriptions of people stopping at the writer's workshop table to button their coats and put on gloves was sad. However, the uplifting part about it was that this church feeds hundreds of hungry people every day. I really liked how Frazier phrases it on page one of the article: "Talking about hunger and being hungry are two different things; talk can wait for a convenient moment, but when you're hungry you're hungry right now."

I really liked Frazier's short detailed descriptions of the people who came to the writer's workshop meetings. There were several small glimpses into the appearances of each person as well as what they wrote about. I can't imagine actually sitting in on the writer's workshop and listening to what these people write about. Each has such a different experience with life, and although most are not happy stories, I imagine they are certainly very interesting. Also, I really liked that one of the volunteers from the writer's workshop took the time and effort to put together the "Food for the Soul" anthology of writing from the workshop (page 3). The fact that she went out of her way to help get some of these people published was very refreshing. I also really liked the title of the anthology, since the writing came from a soup kitchen. I was honestly amazed when I learned that it costs $2,700,000 a year to keep the soup kitchen running. It's sad that the church is having problems getting and/or keeping donors, and it really makes me want to consider donating to the church when I have a career and can afford it!