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!