Sports, Politics and Religion

OK, so here's an observation...
At today's church service there was a woman wearing a Dallas Cowboys jersey. My critical self thought, "Why would anyone wear that jersey to church?" Now, there were several people in clothes w/ sports logos on them at church today - but Dallas? On the day the 'Skins really need to beat Dallas?

My next thought was that I wouldn't have questioned someone's right to wear a political pin supporting any candidate or issue. We are a welcoming parish, after all! But a Dallas jersey, now that was just poor form. :-)

***Update: Wearing the jersey didn't help her team. I should have worn my 'Skins Santa hat.
Dallas - 6
Washington - 27

In the Spirit of... It's Christmas 'til Epiphany!

There are lots of reasons to display creche sets in your home. They are inspiring during the frantic moments leading up to gift opening and over-eating. I imagine the love that goes into the creation of the figurines. I appreciate the craftsmanship of nativity sets from around the world. I marvel at the sense of unity the story of Jesus' birth brings to Christians.

It's been a year since Progressive Pragmatist posted a link to the Cavalcade of Bad Nativities, opening my eyes to the true breadth of nativity artistry. Now, for your post-Christmas pleasure, check out the newest installment: Cavalcade of Bad Nativities II.

There's a "B-Side"???

Long, long ago, one of my Christmas gifts was a really cool little record player. I remember having records that were yellow and one that was even clear red! I'm not sure what songs or stories were on the records, but I know I listened a lot. Unlike today's CDs which have one side... the bottom! ... those old records had two sides - the one everyone wanted and the one the recording company hoped you'd want after they gave it to you!

These days, I listen to B-Side Radio, a podcast that currently features Rene Gutel (see the Roller Skate Jams link) telling the story of buying her husband John's Christmas gift - luckily it's not a gift of the Magi story, but it's got a great ending. Life on the flip side sounds really good!

How Big Is Hannah? Sooo Big!

She crawls, she stands, she has teeth (if you look closely)! No, she doesn't read... yet!

We are all looking forward to Hannah's first Christmas. Her mom bought a play pen to keep the tree safe. Her aunts are delighted with their gift for Hannah. Grammy knows that the paper and boxes will be the most fun of all.

Update On Eme's Bathroom Project

In October I wrote about Eme's Peace Corps project. When I checked the donations web site today, I was thrilled to see that she's down to $641.23 still needed to finance her project! Yippee!

****Update... Eme now needs $389!!

Dede Mirabal

This news item caught my eye today...

Last Mirabal Injured In Fatal Crash (from the DR1 website)
"Belgica de la Cruz Mirabal (Dede), the last surviving Mirabal sister, and mother of former Vice-President Jaime David Fernandez Mirabal, has been injured in a crash that left one person dead and another injured. The accident occurred on the highway between Nagua and Cabrera. Fernandez Mirabal was driving a vehicle that hit a small motorcycle driven by Justo Cruz Guarionel Paredes, 46. Motorcycle passenger Noelia Norberto Ramos, 22, was killed as a result of the crash. According to the national press, Dede Mirabal suffered a broken wrist and other injuries, which, at her age, 83, can be considered serious. News reports say that the accident occurred when the moto driver abruptly turned to retain a fallen baseball cap, not noticing a vehicle was behind him."

I have traveled to the Dominican Republic several times over the past eight years. One of the most profound experiences of my visits - indeed, of my life - has been the opportunity to meet and spend time with Dede Mirabal. We were lucky enough to sit with her and chat on fine summer afternoon in Ojo de Agua. Her sisters, known as "The Butterfly Sisters," were part of the movement to oust the Dominican dictator Rafael Trujillo. Their story is chronicled in Julia Alvarez' novel In the Time of the Butterflies. Trujillo gave the order to assassinate the sisters and thus gave energy to the groups who brought about the overthrow and assassination of Trujillo himself. In many parts of the world, Nov. 25, anniversary of the day the sisters were killed in 1960, is known as the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women. Salcedo, the province in which they lived in the Dominican Republic has been re-named this year to Hermanas Mirabal Province.

Please pray for Dede. She has an amazing sense of peace and grace about her. May God lay His healing hand upon her, today and each day.

Read Julia Alvarez' In The Time of the Butterflies and
Mario Vargas Llosa's The Feast of the Goat.

Happy 10 Months, Hannah!

Ten months ago today, Miss Hannah made her world debut. Today, she's got two teeth, pulls herself up to a stand, has put speed in her crawl and hasn't learned to open the cabinets. What fun it is to have her in the family!

Black Friday

I really do like gifts. I like shopping for my family and friends. I like to unwrap surprises.
Many of us have plenty of "stuff." Here are some of my favorite organizations who could really use some gifts this year:

Flood Victim Relief in the Dominican Republic (Episcopal Relief and Development)
Bathrooms in Bolivia (Eme's Peace Corps project)
Jeanie Schmidt Free Clinic (I volunteer here)
Reston Interfaith (Yup, I live in an economically diverse community)
Heifer International (Who wouldn't want a llama???)

***Update: I just received an email from Eme. Her project is in danger of being canceled. When you flush your toilet, please think of Eme's community who has no toilets.

Oh, Those Cafeteria Ladies!

Today I gained a new appreciation for the ladies of the school kitchen. The annual Thanksgiving meal was served today. Usually there are PTA volunteers assisting on the serving line. This year, we were a few volunteers short. Enter... the office ladies!

Apron and plastic gloves. No hair net! Scoop the green beans into the upper left section. Plop the mashed potatoes into the lower left section. Pass the tray to the stuffing and turkey server. Try not to drag the lever for the scoop through the potatoes - guess they don't make left-handed scoops. Step aside while the new tray of green beans goes into the warmer. Oops, how did that mashed potato end up over there?

Hi, kids! Yep, it's me. I know I'm the office lady, today I'm a cafeteria lady, too! Grab some cranberry sauce and a carton of frozen pumpkin yogurt. Remember your little wooden spoon. Forgot your money? Everybody who wants turkey gets turkey today. Bring your money tomorrow.

The kitchen staff is such a good team. They keep an eye on each other as they scoop and serve. They maneuver big trays of hot food in tight quarters. They know which kids are vegetarian and which kids can't have milk. It's amazing how they serve more than 750 kids in less than two hours!

Today, I stand in admiration of the cafeteria kitchen ladies.

Not EVEN Advent!

Here it is mid-November and I'm already thinking about stock-piling some favorite Christmas treats. I know that when I really want a Candy Cane Joe-Joe to celebrate Epiphany, there won't be a single box left at my local Trader Joe's.

Similarly, I know that when I want one last gingerbread latte while shopping the post-Christmas sales, my local Starbucks will be out of gingerbread flavoring syrup!

So, I ask you, does one succumb to the marketing trends and start drinking eggnog before it's time to bake the Thanksgiving pumpkin pie? If I eat all the fruitcake I want now (YES, I do like fruitcake!), will I be in a better frame of mind to observe Advent?

Calendar Girls!

A few weeks ago I asked a friend what she'd been doing over the summer. She told me she's been teaching herself to use PhotoShop in order to complete a project her mother-in-law had asked her to help with - a calendar.

Lon Wagner of The Virginian-Pilot wrote this article about the ladies of Westminster-Canterbury retirement community in Hampton Roads. What fun! You go, girls!

Costumes and Candies

It's 6:45 and we've had one set of kids stop by the house to grab a Snickers bar or Pixie Stix from the candy basket. There will be more... wait, here they come now!

OK, I'm back... My daughters got very creative this year. If you're of a certain age you remember the year "Operation" was the game you really wanted for Christmas. Here is the costume version. (She even had a buzzer in her pocket.) If she wins the contest this evening her blue-clad sister is claiming a creative consultant's fee.

I hope your Halloween is full of giggling visitors dressed as princesses, Supermen, Harry Potter, Jack Sparrow and cowgirls! And I hope you have a Reese's peanut butter cup left for yourself when the evening is over.

A Football Question

How do you quiet more than 66,000 orange-poncho-clad football fans after 58 minutes of screaming their hearts and lungs out?

Watch a replay of the last 2 minutes of the Boston College/Virginia Tech game for the answer.

BC 14 VT 10

Really good game.
Bummer of an ending.

The Importance of Tea

I just finished the book Three Cups of Tea - One Man's Mission to Promote Peace... One School at a Time. It was recommended to me by Progressive Pragmatist. What an inspiring read. I'm not a fast reader and I'm easily distracted so I've been reading this book for a while. I shouldn't be surprised that lots of people I know have been reading it, it is a bestseller after all!

While I was reading Greg Mortenson's story of his commitment to building schools in Pakistan, I got news of the death of Mike Robinson. Mike's son is a good friend of my daughter and I know the family through our high school band activities. Mike loved the Himalayas and died of high altitude pulmonary edema in Ladakh, India, where he had planned to celebrate his retirement from FEMA by hiking up there next to Earth's ceiling. He had read Three Cups of Tea before his trip. His wife Kathi gave copies of the book to people at Mike's memorial service. The Central Asia Institute is one of the organizations suggested for donations to honor Mike.
(The photo was taken at St. Anne's after the service.)

Greg Mortenson's belief is that education is the way to stop terrorism. And the way to provide education is to empower the people of remote communities in Pakistan and Afghanistan to build their own schools. The book is full of stories about overcoming incredible difficulties to get those schools built. The difficulties are not overcome by throwing money at a situation, although that does help! The most powerful tool in the process seems to be building a relationship before building a school. And the best way to build a relationship may just be to share some tea.

I like to think that St. Anne's mission trips are built on that spirit of relationship. I'll be thinking about how I can incorporate some of Greg Mortenson's ideas into my life. Get the book! If you order through here, Amazon donates money to the Central Asia Institute.

What Do You Believe?

So, I took this quiz... Eucharistic theology created with QuizFarm.com

You scored as Calvin You are John Calvin. You seek to be faithful to Scripture, and to harmonize difficult sayings. You believe that in the Lord's Supper those who have faith are united to Christ, who is present spiritually, yet in a real way. Calvin 100% Orthodox 94% Luther 69% Catholic 50% Unitarian 31% Zwingli 19%

I'll have to look up all these to figure out why I scored the way I did! Wanna try it?
Eucharistic theology
created with QuizFarm.com

Kitchens and Bathrooms

One of my friends is currently a Peace Corps volunteer in Bolivia. Eme has been working in a remote village. The pictures show a kitchen project - think about your whole kitchen being a smoker and note the new chimney! Now, think about that same house with NO bathroom! It's like that in the whole village. Eme is going to change that.

Not long ago, I received an email from Eme titled, "Exciting News!" Now, I've known Peace Corps volunteers who have gotten engaged while "in country" or who have adopted babies before they came home. But, no, this was not that kind of news! It was all about bathrooms!

Here's the email:
"The greatest news of all for me within the last bit of time was that my bathroom project proposal was reviewed and approved by Peace Corps Bolivia. This means that it will be sent to PC Washington DC to be reviewed and posted on the internet.
"What does all this mean exactly? Glad you asked! Once Washington Peace Corps has posted my project online whoever wishes to donate can do just that. My proposal is to construct 28 family bathrooms, one at each family's house. What Washington posted on the Peace Corps website is my project, its description, and what I'm asking for: US$5,000 (for materials). The librarian in the Peace Corps Bolivia office contacted me to let me know that donations are now being accepted.
"Being fully truthful to all of you on my list I was going to ask you all to help me achieve the amount. That's to say, and I have thought of this, that if each one of the 100+ on my list were to donate $50 my goal would be reached. When have you been able to construct a bathroom for $50? This will give a family the opportunity for privacy that we all take advantage of every time we use a bathroom, even when it's super gross. Whether you donate or not I will continue to send you these wonderful mass emails with or without great stories of cows and the such. But if you find a different/better project while on the Peace Corps website PLEASE donate. Volunteers truly believe in their projects and their communities. I’ll be sending an email out to you all when I know my projects been posted. Thanks ahead of time for your support!!! By the way, someone already donated $1500!!!! I’m super PUMPED!!! And on such a high right now!"

So, I clicked here.

Today I got this in the mail:
"On behalf of the Peace Corps, it is my pleasure to thank you for your contribution of $XXX to the Peace Corps Partnership Program. Your contribution has been directed to the Family Bathrooms project in Bolivia.

"Since 1964, the Partnership Program has been successful in fostering self-sufficiency in countries around the world due to the concern and participation of people such as you. Your contribution will provide the assistance necessary to improve the lives of individuals and families in these communities and support their efforts in achieving sustained change."

Yahoo! I have a bathroom in Bolivia! Maybe I'll give it to my parents for Christmas! Would your family like a bathroom, too?

More Decisions... Informed?

I am an Episcopalian. I will remain an Episcopalian despite the arguments in my denomination and the Anglican Communion to which we Episcopalians currently belong. This link will take you to a very well written statement by Bishop Alan Wilson of Buckingham, England. He talks about why he is going to the Lambeth Conference. This era of disagreement saddens me. How can we work so hard to be Christians and then refuse to see the Christ in each other?

Informed Decisions

Do you have trouble sorting out the currently declared candidates?
This tool may help! I was somewhat surprised at my favored candidate... John Edwards. Who is yours?

Jury Duty

I got the questionnaire sometime this past summer, so when I got a letter from the court, I wasn't really surprised. Jury duty - call the message line the night before to confirm which groups need to report. I called, yep, gotta show up.

The jury pool is told to report by 8:15 a.m. Check-in is the scanning of the bar code on the letter. We validated our parking receipts and waited for the 9:00 orientation video. We waited with novels, textbooks, laptops, crosswords, Sudoku. We watched the video, we were called to a courtroom upstairs.

While we waited outside the courtroom, some people walked by talking loudly. Turns out they were talking about the case we were to hear. So, back we went to the jury holding area. After being reassigned to a different case, we went back upstairs to the courtrooms. By this time it was 11:00.

Anyone familiar with Law and Order knows that weeding the jury down to the proper number is the next step. Voir dire is the term for questioning the jury. Questions had to do with issues like personal connections to law enforcement officials or people with alcohol problems. I was among the 12 people actually seated on the jury. The remainder of the jury pool left the courtroom and the lawyers began to present their information. The defendant was represented by a public defender, the state was represented by a single prosecutor.

Throughout the remainder of Tuesday, the jury listened, went back to the deliberation room while the lawyers spoke with the judge about various motions, had lunch, listened a little more, waited in the deliberation room for another hour and eventually was told to return Wednesday morning for closing statements and deliberation. Wednesday's activities started at 10:15 with the closing statements, instructions to the jury and the election of a foreman. Then... the power went out at the courthouse! After another hour of waiting, we were told to return on Thursday morning.

My last day of jury duty was the most difficult. Not only were we to decide guilty or not, we were to decide the penalty. The twelve of us actually worked very well together. There was a mutual sense of respect in that windowless room. And, there was an overwhelming sense of respect for the judicial system. We did find the defendant guilty. The penalty phase was a bit more difficult. I was amazed that as much as we all wanted to get back to our "normal" lives, we all wanted to carefully consider our decision and were willing to take the amount of time we needed to reach a unanimous decision. Not one person left that room unchanged by the experience of sending a person to prison for a year.

I really don't want to be on a jury again. But neither will I avoid serving if I'm called. I sure hope any other jury I serve on will be as good a working group as this one was.

Have You Missed Me?

Seems like a long time since I've put up a post! Since we last "spoke," I've been on jury duty and gone to Disney World. I hadn't thought of my life as boring but I sure have nothing to complain about for a looooong time!

So, check this space... I'll share some stories soon.

Yup, Circle Game!

Not quite 26 years ago, I flew from Puerto Rico to Virginia and introduced an almost crawling baby to the guy you see here. That's my brother Dave. He was a senior in high school at the time. We watched that baby revel in her new-found ability to rock on hands and knees. We called it "revving up!"

At the time, I remembered watching my brother "revving up" his toy cars when he was a little kid. It was a poignant moment, realizing that the boy had grown to a young man who was enjoying the sight of my first-born on the brink of self-locomotion.

The other day, my brother flew to Virginia from Arizona. I watched while my first-born introduced her first-born to her Uncle Dave. Together, the mom, grandma and great-uncle watched daughter, granddaughter and great-niece "revving up."

"Remember?" I asked. "Yup," he replied. Oh, we laughed! Hear the circle, that carousel of time?

I Love My Church

Today was our first day back on the fall schedule. That meant the 9:00 service was in full swing. Sunday school for 5th graders and younger happens during the first part of the service and the families reunite for the eucharist.

Today was about as much fun as a church full of people who appreciate children can have. In one service we had:

• a baptism - really cute little guy
• about a million kids parade in from Sunday school
• the kid who cried loudly because his brother hit him - NOT because it hurt
• the kid who picked his nose the whole time he was up front talking to the priest
• the kid who pounded on the window of the "cry room" when all the other kids were loose in the sanctuary - you could almost hear the shout of LET ME OUT!
  
• the little girl who danced ballet all the way down the aisle to communion
• the kids who "read" the service out of the hymnal until they decided all the black dots meant it was the singing book, not the reading book

This morning's service was testament to the fact that we love our kids. They bring an energy and innocence to our worship. Thank God.

Remembering

This morning I put on my flag pin and headed out the door to work. I sat at a traffic light and pondered the license plate in front of me: 940AM.

Suppose they really like that radio station?

No, it was on the Fight Terrorism plate.
I remembered all day.

School's In!

It was the Friday before school starts - open house day. Families come to find classrooms and meet teachers. Once in a while they stop by the office.

This family lives next door to me. Aren't they cute?

My church leases space to a day care center. The center has a tight budget and could not replace the aging van they use to transport kids to the local schools.

Our outreach committee voted to give the center a substantial grant toward a new bus.
Here it comes now!

On Friday, the director of the center drove kids to school in the new bus. She said she was tempted to drive it past all the other day care centers in town and HONK just to show it off.

As the bus pulls away, here's the message.
What a pleasure to be part of this gift!

What I Like About September

Peaches, apples, tomatoes and corn available on the same day at the farmers market

College football

Boxes and boxes of new crayons

Little kids wearing backpacks that are longer than their backs

School shoes

College football

Lunch boxes with cool features like nifty containers and blue ice pockets

Cool nights, warm days

Thinking about wearing sweaters again but not needing them yet

Did I mention college football?

Dahlias, zinnias and sunflowers

High school marching bands

Kids dressed in new back-to-school outfits that will feel better when the temperature is 20 degrees cooler - "But, Mom! It's my new school outfit, I don't care if it's made of wool and the high will be 80 today!"

How about you?

What's In A Name?

My name is Martha. I've always taken the story of Martha-in-the-kitchen-while-Mary-enjoys-Jesus-time personally. I do like having a biblical name, and I do like the reminder to look for the Mary moments of my life and fully participate in them.

My "Mary moments" this week were times with my children. The reminders to cherish such moments were strong. Megan was in town to attend a viewing for a high school classmate who died of a brain aneurysm. Auntie Erin postponed her return to college to that she could see her sister and niece. Auntie Clare and I also got some good Hannah time.

Thursday evening, in the course of some volunteer work, I saw Esperanza for the first time in several weeks. She left town quickly to be with her son who was suffering from kidney failure. Her son died within hours of her arrival. I told Esperanza that I was sorry for her loss. We cried together. We'll probably cry together the next time I see her, too.

As I was driving home, knowing that Megan and Hannah were at my house, I remembered that the word "esperanza" means "hope." I think that Esperanza will have a hard time living into her name for a while. I felt a little guilty leaving the grieving mother to be with a joyful little 7-month-old. Esperanza will be in my prayers; I will pray for hope.

Photo is Auntie Clare with Hannah. 8.23.2007

Yellow? Not Pink?

I got a call today about church flowers. I've been doing a lot of wedding flowers lately and had thought to make a fun arrangement for church on Sunday including some summer farmers market bounty. But that won't happen.

The caller said that Angelique has died. Now, I don't know Angelique personally. I do know several members of her extended family. She was an elderly lady, frail enough in body that she hadn't been to a church service for quite some time. Her spirit was strong, though, and she had communion brought to her home. I know that she was the recipient of a beautiful pink prayer shawl.

That would be why I questioned my caller when she said Angelique's daughter had requested YELLOW roses.

"Really, not pink?" I asked. "No," said my caller, "Her daughter said Angelique loved pink clothes but yellow was her favorite flower color." So, we'll have yellow roses and white gladiolus. And on Monday, we'll lay to rest a matriarch.

Friends, when you wonder about flowers for my funeral (some day far in the future!), tell the church ladies to make the arrangements big and bright. When it's all over, though, just leave a couple blooms wherever you leave my remains... take the rest of the flowers home and enjoy them! And when you wander through the farmers market in the summer, remember how blessed we are that God's creation includes zinnias, lisianthus, sunflowers and lilies. Take home a fistful of flowers and think of me.

I am no country, I am every country

This is just too funny. Thanks, Progressive Pragmatist.

You're the United Nations!

Most people think you're ineffective, but you are trying to
completely save the world from itself, so there's always going to be a long
way to go. You're always the one trying to get friends to talk to each
other, enemies to talk to each other, anyone who can to just talk instead of
beating each other about the head and torso. Sometimes it works and sometimes
it doesn't, and you get very schizophrenic as a result. But your heart
is in the right place, and sometimes also in New York.


Take the Country Quiz
at the Blue Pyramid

Beach Litter

This story just tickles me.

Can you imagine being at the beach and having your kids wake you up from your book-induced nap to say they found an 8-foot Lego man?????

Oh, sweet mysteries of life. Was he on his way to see his buds Big Foot and Yeti? Or maybe he's being recruited by the Transformers?

Wanna create your own Lego person? Try this!

Endeavor - And Away She Goes!

This evening, twenty-two and a half years melted away as I watched the space shuttle Endeavor lift off. All those years ago, I watched, with my oldest daughter, as the space shuttle Challenger lifted off. Megan was just four years old. We had talked about the teacher astronaut for several days. And then, suddenly, the teacher astronaut was gone.

Tonight, another teacher astronaut rode the shuttle from its launch pad. Tomorrow we'll see her in news stories and begin to follow her adventures aboard the Endeavor and the space station. Christa McAuliffe's back-up and partner-in-training has finally done what we had hoped would happen all those years ago. There's a teacher in space!

Here's a snippet of NASA's Preflight Interview with Barbara Morgan:

...That was a long time ago, Barbara, but as you head into these final months of training for your flight now some of the same things about training were ... are ... are occurring that occurred before 51L. Do you think of those days very much? Do you think of the training days back in 1985 leading up to January of ’86 in a fond way? Are the memories still strong after all this time?

You know, it hasn’t been a long time. It was just yesterday. It still feels like just yesterday. As we go through training now, those memories still are there with me. For example, when we go flying in the T-38s (and we do that every week), it’s a wonderful, wonderful experience and it’s a great part of training as we fly those aircraft. I always remember the very first flight I had with Mike Smith and how he showed me what it’s like to do barrel rolls and how to fly lazy eights and how to fly in formation with another plane and how, at that time, I knew absolutely nothing about flying. And I’ll never forget after Mike showed me a few of these things and he said, “OK, Barb, it’s your turn, push the stick.” You can fly the jet from either the front cockpit or the rear cockpit. And, I said, “Which way?” And, he said, “Any way you want. It’s your plane. Take it.” And I was shocked by that, and flew some barrel rolls and, you know, realized that Mike had just opened up a whole new world of opportunities for me. Those were opportunities that have carried into today, as we learn as crewmates to fly and communicate with each other and to communicate with our air traffic control and to do everything that we need to do both in the T-38s and in spaceflight. Read the rest here.

Barbara Morgan's flying tonight! I'm so glad. And, I appreciate her efforts to share her opportunities with the rest of us.

Harry Potter - Does He Live Or Die???

I know the answer!!!!!! But I won't tell.
I finished the book today at about 1 a.m. It was a great read. I marvel again at the craftsmanship of J.K. Rowling. I mourn the end of the series and the passing of some of my favorite characters. I wonder where I put my old mug - the one with Hedwig and Platform 9 3/4.

Officially Tagged

rene said...You are now officially tagged. In order to play the game, you must now post 5 things about yourself and then tag 5 other people to do the same. :)

So, here you go, Rene.

1. I love peach pound cake and peach jam. (I'll make some today! Maybe I'll post the pound cake recipe.)

2. My favorite meal ever involves fresh rainbow trout, cornmeal, bacon grease and a wood stove. All that would happen in the Rocky Mountains of northwestern Colorado - maybe we'd use a propane camp stove these days.

3. I'm a slow reader who accumulates good books I still haven't read. That's why I have a new list of books I want to read on the sidebar. I'm hoping that will encourage me! (Though I am more than halfway through the new HP book... that's self defense as I know someone will tell me how it turns out.) Maybe I'm not that slow a reader, just easily distracted!!!! That crochet project needs some time...

4. MMMMMmmmm, good coffee! (Same reaction for good chocolate.) I learned to drink coffee during visits to Colombia. Then I lived in Puerto Rico for several years. Really dark coffee, with milk, no sugar.

5. I'd really like to learn a new language - either sign or Arabic, can't decide.

Now, as to the tagging 5 more, watch out.
Martha

I'm Reading...

I was looking at blogs instead of reading my borrowed copy of Harry Potter! Progressive Pragmatist put this quiz on her blog. I wanted to be Hermione, too! But, Dumbledore isn't such a bad alter ego!

Have a go at the quiz for yourself.
I'm going back to Harry now.

You scored as Albus Dumbledore, Strong and powerful you admirably defend your world and your charges against those who would seek to harm them. However sometimes you can fail to do what you must because you care too much to cause suffering. Albus Dumbledore 85% Hermione Granger 75% Ron Weasley 70% Harry Potter 70% Remus Lupin 65% Ginny Weasley 65% Draco Malfoy 50% Sirius Black 45% Severus Snape 35% Lord Voldemort 25% Your Harry Potter Alter Ego Is...? created with QuizFarm.com

Farmers Market Bounty

Summer Saturdays often include a trip to the farmers market. Unlike the grocery store produce bins which are stocked with all manner of fruits and veggies whether they are in season here or not, the farmers market ebbs and flows with a harvest that mirrors the local turn of season.

I forget the slow start of the farmers market. In May I want the full bounty... right now! Instead, the message is wait, celebrate new spinach and lettuce, your tomatoes will come soon enough. And the kettlecorn booth is here no matter what!

Today's trip to the farmers market was perfect. There were melons and zucchinis, beans and bread, cheeses and honey. It was the place to chat with friends among the basil, to compare who had the best peaches, snack on some watermelon, succumb to the call of pink and purple lisianthus. I did not succumb to the purple cauliflower.

Supper tonight will be heirloom tomato and bacon sandwiches on Great Harvest bread. We'll have peaches, too. We'll top it all off with strawberry-rhubarb pie from the Mennonite bakery.

I hope you eat well this week!
(PS... did you know WIC vouchers are accepted by many of the farmers? Cool.)

If Life Is a Highway, God Bless the Detours

Fifteen mission team members and ALL their bags arrive on time!


We tie a distinctive ribbon to each bag to that we can easily grab them at baggage claim. Imagine our surprise and delight to find ALL our bags lined up and waiting for us in the Santo Domingo airport!

(I hope the person who did us this good deed was watching when we discovered our luggage!)




We asked our bus driver to point out the spot along the highway where the dictator Trujillo was assassinated in 1961. He did us one better and stopped so we could take pictures. It is at once a beautiful location and a reminder that this country is full of contrasts.

Santiago! ¡Llegamos!
The Monument to the Heroes of the Restoration is the landmark to spot. We're finally here!

Two weeks ago today I was sitting in the Santiago home of dear friends. Our mission trip schedule called for Monday to be our first work day and we were anxious to experience the sore muscles of our construction project and the ringing ears of our vacation Bible school. Instead, here we were sitting safely in our host’s living room (and patio, and back yard!) while a nationwide strike cleared the city of traffic and pedestrians.

After a leisurely breakfast, we had gathered in one of our hotel rooms to do some craft prep work for the VBS. Scissors flew, ribbon was tied, papers were sorted, songs were learned. The hotel staff stopped by to identify the source of the singing and laughter.



As a result of the strike, there were NO cabs on the streets, in fact, the streets were deserted! We called a taxi service to pick us up and take us to Fr. Hipolito’s house for the rest of the day.

The day was later described as the best type of family gathering. In an ideal world, family holidays are spent in just the way we spent our Monday… introducing new family, waiting for the last traveler to arrive, great food, sharing stories, teasing one another, fighting to help in the kitchen, looking at pictures, escaping to the bedroom for some small group time, falling asleep in the rocking chair, a post-meal stroll through the neighborhood, kids chasing each other around, a sing-along, hugs with the exclamation of “I’m so glad we’re together.”



When the day ended we were really ready to get “to work.” We wanted to see the neighborhood kids; we wanted to get our hands dirty at the construction site. And, we gave thanks for relationships strengthened during our detour day.

One Week a Year

Over the past 8 summers, I've been privileged to live among friends in the Dominican Republic for a week or so. Along with church friends from here, I am enveloped by the hospitality of church friends there. We spend the week catching up on the happenings of the 51 weeks a year that we live apart. I came back last night from our annual visit. I want to write several blog entries. For today, please be satisfied with just a few snapshots. There are more - with 16 of us snapping digital photos, you'd better believe you'll see more. :-)

On the way to the gate... Reagan/National
July 7

We had to leave Reston at 4:30 a.m. to make our 7:30 a.m. flight.
Our flight was on time, our transfer in Miami was smooth, it was a charmed trip!


Mmmmmmm!
Rice & beans w/ pumpkin, chicken, avocado, pineapple, ripe plantains.
Does life get any better?

This was Sunday dinner. It looks a lot like dinner on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. I'm not sure I would ever get tired of this menu, it would be hard to find better food anywhere.

Vacation Bible School . . . for 100+

We really did work! We were very surprised to have more than 100 kids at VBS every afternoon.

I don't have photos of the construction site, others will be sharing so you can see some roof work.

My suitcase is mostly unpacked. My emotions, that's a different story. So, more soon.