In the Midst of Abundance

I had a memorable lunch a few years ago with my friends Mike and Claudia, who had recently returned from Malawi, a small country in southeastern Africa. We were sitting in a booth at one of those chain restaurants that has a twenty-seven-page menu. That booth was my front-row seat to culture shock.

Mike and Claudia picked up the menu and quickly developed the proverbial African-wildebeest-in-headlights glaze. The server came and went several times, trying to take our orders, but Mike and Claudia could not make a decision,…