How would you like a bowl of fried caterpillars for lunch? Or would you enjoy taking a few along for snacks on your next picnic? “Horrible!” you might say, “Don’t even suggest such a thing!” But there are people in southern Africa who would tell you that you don’t know what you’re missing until you have tasted this very special food.
The African natives don’t mean that every kind of caterpillar should be eaten — just those known as Mopane worms (because they are found mostly on Mopane trees), or a few others like them. These are large caterpillars, as long as four inches with fat bodies circled with green and black bands, or sometimes with yellow or red bands instead of green. Many Africans eat them either raw or cooked, as a snack or added to other foods in stews.
Boys and girls, as well as men and women, collect them. When one is removed from a leaf, it is pressed flat to remove the inside part and then either eaten right away or added to others in a basket to take home. Sometimes they are canned for eating later. It is not just the natives in the forests who enjoy them, but many wealthy people buy them in sealed cans or in plastic bags in grocery stores and meat markets. Housewives, fixing lunch bags for workers or for children in school, often include a package to be eaten for dessert — just as most of us would eat a piece of cake or a candy bar.
While all this may seem like a bad dream, this food is actually full of vitamins and minerals and helpful for good health.
Visitors who have tried them report they taste like nuts; others compare them with roast beef, while some think they taste more like a breakfast cereal. But all visitors agree it would take quite a while to really want them included in their meals!
The opening Bible verse tells of the bounties of God’s provision for all He has created. Of course, the verse does not mean that everything can be eaten without first knowing if it is harmless or needs special preparation. It may have been God’s purpose to have it changed into medicines, or even as a poison to dispose of dangerous pests, or for some other use than eating. But it does remind us that the Creator had a definite purpose for everything He brought into being, and all can be accepted with thanksgiving.
Have you thanked Him for His goodness to you, not only for daily food, but in providing His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, to be a Saviour for those who acknowledge their need of having their sins washed away and who accept Him as their personal Saviour. If you have not yet accepted Him, don’t wait another day!
ML-01/10/1988