"Do unto others as you would have them do unto you."
--New and Improved God
People are funny, sometimes.
The school I work at takes on various projects for the kids, often community service type projects. Our latest was a food drive. For two weeks kids (and teachers) were asked to bring in non-perishable food items to give to the local food bank. As is our wont, we offered a small prize for the class that donated the most food. As per usual, the prize was a pizza party.
This point should be clarified; the pizza party is three pizzas and a stack of paper plates. It takes 10-15 minutes to complete. There are no drinks (other than water), there is no dessert, no "what topping would you like", no party favors, not even any paper streamers or balloons. Each student gets 1-2 pieces of pizza. Not Papa John's pizza either. Just some local joint. Okay pizza. Not great.
HOWEVER, it is a prize that the kids think is fun. And it is a prize that only one class can win.
SO, one the penultimate day of the drive a parent walks into the office and asks "could I have some help unloading cans from my car?"
This is perfectly okay. Parents are expected to help out, and obviously the kids aren't going to buy the food themselves. If perhaps, in some cases the kids never actually see the food, so what? It's the thought that counts.
So a teacher goes out to help carry in the cans. Except that she can't. The back of the SUV is full of cans -- "about 300", by the parent's estimation.
After a hurried consultation, the parent is advised to drive directly to the food bank, where they will deal with it as they see fit. In about an hour or so the food bank calls up the school; there were 508 cans of food.
The other classes have totals of 100-200 cans each.
This is not out of character for this parent. It is very important to her that her son have whatever is 'best' for him. Which apparently means whatever he wants.
While we are all very thankful that $35 dollars worth of pizza for the kids was magically multiplied into $300 worth of food for the needy, there is a strong feeling that a certain parent is both nuts and uncharitable.
Or, perhaps, only half-charitable.
Either way, I don't think God would approve.