3 meals

He left the appam behind. Untouched. He paid the bill, his face sour and the tips of his ears red from all the screaming. And walked out, his stomach leading him by three-quarters of a foot and his backside following by another.

What led to this string of events was the fact that he was hungry. And ID was crowded and the appam pan had over-heated.

The fried chef had been managing alright, each meal taking a good ten minutes longer than usual. 'Groucho' had walked in a while before and placed an order. He seemed hungry and antsy. And the food really was taking time. So when the chef finally got the appam to his plate, he burst into a slew of abuses and kept yelling until the manager arrived. He demanded the bill. He pretentiously opened his wallet, dumped the money at the cashier, and walked out.

The food went to waste.

There's no doubting that he's probably otherwise, a relatively decent man. Like most of us generally are. Except for when we're hungry. Our bowels usually get the better of us. And gas does well to fuel anger.

Life sure must be hard for chefs. Imagine the job stress that comes with a profession that guarantees dealing with potential time bombs on a daily basis.

3 meals -Getting by is pretty tough without one of them.

Conversation rarely turns sour when it’s bounteous with nature's goodness. A well fed person is always healthy, wealthy and wise. We learn well, behave well and are generous with laughter and courtesy. But when we're hungry, some of us get depressed, others turn whinny, and some even resort to violence and tears. I personally either get really quite or I end up biting someone's head off. Yup, we sure require food for thought. We require it to think, and we require it to be thoughtful.

3 meals - It must be really, really, really tough then getting by without the surety of having even just one at all.

Which then gets you realizing that poor people aren't mannerless, greedy, irrational and rude just because they aren't educated. They don't bother about education, etiquette and courtesy because hunger devours all other ambitions. They can't afford being polite, cheery and pleasant quite simply because they can't afford a square meal a day, let alone 3.

So let's all us 3 meals-plus-7-in-betweeners-a-day gorgers give 'em a break when they come tapping the tinted windows of our air-conditioned sedans within which we sit munching packets of unhealthy fried food that each cost twice the amount of a single wholesome meal.

Yes, it is true - they're perfectly normal, limbs all in order . They should probably be working if they need money. And if we keep feeding them, they'll never learn. But everybody needs a break. And since we can afford it, it’ll be very cool of us to help them catch one. A little food just might take them a long way.

And if charity to someone in need is not really your cup of tea, consider abstaining from being judgmental at least. Because remember, if they did have food, it’s quite possible that a good number of them would probably kick your arse in math. To begin with.