Humble Fare

Dear husband and I had some minor cross-cultural adjustments to make when we married. We are both Americans but I'm a West Coast girl and he hails from the Midwest and the East. Where I grew up a salad could be considered an entree, even if there were no meat in it. Same for soups. Dear husband, on the other hand, had never even tasted an avocado before he met me (aren't avocados better than meat??). Additionally, my wonderful mother-in-law, also a wonderful cook, was a Sunday-pot-roast-with-all-the-trimmings kind of woman. (I still can't compete, but I certainly have learned a lot from her!)

Through the years I've learned to cook enough dishes which don't prompt my husband to look at me with a longing "where's the beef" look in his eyes and he's learned to be satisfied with a few meatless dinners. Just a few. Below is a the recipe for a favorite soup which besides being quick to fix, tasty, and healthy, is very easy on an increasingly burdened grocery budget in these days of rising food prices.

Tomato, Lentil, and Cilantro Soup

1/4 cup canola oil
2 medium onions, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp. garam masala (Indian spice mixture)
red pepper flakes to taste
2 14 oz cans of chopped tomatoes, puree one can in the blender
8 cups vegetable stock
1 cup red (orange) lentils
2 tsp. sugar
1/2 cup-or more-chopped fresh cilantro leaves

Heat oil in a large pan, add onions, garlic, garam masala, and red pepper flakes. Cook over medium heat, stirring, until onions are soft. Add tomatoes, stock, lentils, sugar, and cilantro, simmer, stirring, uncovered about 20 minutes or until lentils are tender.

Serve with sour cream and chopped cilantro leaves. Of course, Dear Husband would prefer it served with a steak, but he'll settle for a grilled cheese sandwich.

"Better is a dinner of herbs where love is than a fattened ox and hatred with it."
Proverbs 15:17

Costumes on the Fly

Just 36 hours prior to the Fall Festival costume party, my dear children decided they would like to attend. You can probably guess the question which followed this decision: "Mom, what can I go as?" I'd given away some of the items in our costume bag and what was left was mostly too small to be of use to any of them. With no possibility of a quick trip to JoAnn's for supplies and not a lot of creative-costume-planning-energy flowing through my brain I simply shrugged my shoulders. Last minute costume panic is not my idea of a good time.

Thankfully, the kids came through, each one coming up with a costume which, I thought, fit their personalities/dispositions and which was easy to put together. This actually turned out to be no-stress fun for all of us. Imagine!

Artist Son, who is presently re-reading Lord of the Rings, decided to go as a Hobbit. The white shirt came from the costume bag, the vest and pants from Mom's closet, and the hooded cape was improvised from a brown fleece blanket I was able to find at the store. Notice the authentic furry Hobbit feet--cut from an old faux fur cap.

Tayta was Jane Austen, or your favorite Jane Austen character. She couldn't decide. We only had to buy some bobby pins and ribbon. Her dress was improvised from Mom's skirt and a thankfully-she-had-one-white blouse. Fresh cut from the garden lavender filled in her basket. She reported that only one of the kids her age had heard of Jane Austen but they had heard of Pride and Prejudice. She filled them in.

I'm sure you can guess who Active Son is impersonating. Only thing I had to by for this costume was a blue swim cap--$4. What a deal.

The Problem of Evil

It is the problem of problems, isn't it? Even approaching it in a blog post is probably, for me, complete folly. Huge subject. Infinite God. Pooh-brained me. However, circumstances in the lives of friends and conversations with several others who are struggling to make sense of this deep mystery has caused me to think anew. An author who always helps me think, Peter Kreeft, entered our home again last week, this time in the form of his book Three Philosophies of Life.



The entire chapter, Job: Life as Suffering, is wonderful but here is a short passage which ever so concisely, eloquently, reasonably, and triumphantly helps to clear my fog:

"When Saint Thomas Aquinas stated in the Summa the problem of evil as one of the two objections to the existence of God, he remembered what many philosophers forget: that the solution, God's solution, is concrete, not abstract; dramatic, not schematic; an event in time, not a timeless truth. Saint Thomas stated the problem as follows:

"'God' means infinite goodness. But if one of two contraries is infinite, the other is totally destroyed. Yet evil exists [and is not destroyed]. Therefore God [infinite goodness] does not exist."

And he answered it as follows:

"As Augustine says, Since God is the highest good, He would not allow any evil to exist in His works unless His omnipotence and goodness were such as to bring good even out of evil."

(my insert) "And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good for those who are called according to his purpose.: Romans 8:28 ESV

In other words, life, like Job, is like a fairy tale. To get to live happily ever after, you have to go through the dung heap. Evil is only temporary; good is eternal. Once again, in a word, "wait".

But wait in faith. Jesus told Martha, before he raised her brother Lazarus from the dead, "Did I not tell you that if you believe you will see the glory of God." Seeing is not believing. but believing is seeing, eventually. Job does not wait patiently, but he waits. Job's faith is not sunny and serene, but it is faith. It is not without doubts. (Indeed , his doubts came from his faith. When faith is full, it is open and can include doubts; when it is weak it cannot tolerate doubts.) But Job remains a hero of faith. He waits in faith, and he sees the glory of God. He is blessed in the very waiting, in the dung, in the agony, and he is doubly blessed in the finding, in the end." (pp. 75, 76)

Black Apple Dolls

I've been a Martha Stewart devotee every since I , as a newly engaged young women, discovered a book jacket-less copy of her classic debut, Entertaining on the sale table of my campus bookstore. Price: One dollar. These were pre-internet days when you could find such books only at high retail in physical rather than virtual bookstores. I was at once overwhelmed and inspired by the possibilities of my future domesticity. Though I didn't know how to cook when I married--unless you count bean burritos and Rice-A-Roni with chicken--Martha tutored me through a successful, albeit exhausting, first Thanksgiving feast complete with homemade pies decorated with pastry cut-outs and a to-die-for dried fruit and nut stuffing soaked in brandy.

Despite Martha's high publicized personal problems and the discovery that her life was not as idyllic as Entertaining lead me to first believe, I've continued to be inspired by Martha's creations. The lady has style in spades. And now that she is Martha Stewart, The Conglomerate, she knows how to find others with a great sense of design style.

While sitting in the Cleveland airport last August I noticed that the TV monitor was broadcasting the Martha Stewart Show. I'd never watched it before (don't watch TV, except in airports) but I settled in, hoping to learn something new. I was not disappointed. Her guest was Emily Martin , currently the best selling artist on the craft site, Etsy. (Six figures was mentioned.) Emily demonstrated how to make her selling-faster-than-she-can-make-them dolls and with the extra bonus of a link to the Martha Stewart website which provided video tutorials and download-able templates for the patterns. Perfect for Tayta (youngest daughter)! thought I.

Here are Tayta's first two dolls--one is now resting on a bookshelf in Oldest Daughter's dorm room in Ohio. She loved making them and did nearly all the stitching by hand. I helped only with the final machine seam. Tayta has plans for many more dolls which include ideas of how to embellish them with scarfs, little purses, and hats. Thanks, Emily for sharing your great idea!

(Not sure why most of my hyperlinks remain in black; all bold, italicized words and phrases should be active links.)

Happy Birthday to a Master Gardener

In my later teen years and into my early twenties, I think my mom may have worried that she hadn't successfully imparted some important domestic skills to me~I couldn't really cook anything and I didn't show any interest in puttering in the garden. If she did worry, she needn't have: the love of a good man kindled interest in all things domestic and the latent lessons of creating a beautiful home and garden which I passively learned growing up as my mother's daughter sprung to life.

This summer the entire family enjoyed the fruit (and flower) of my mom's love of gardening, enjoying barbecues in the back yard, sitting on the front deck in the evening, and eating yummy salads made from the bounty of her tidy kitchen garden.

This oh-so-neat vegetable garden brought the neighborhood association out for a visit as the sub-division covenant specified that no vegetable gardens could be grown in the front yard. Well, this garden was kind of, sort of in the side yard and it had nasturtiums, zinnias, marigolds...

...and some exquisitely beautiful squash blossoms growing in it, so in the end, the neighborhood association let it remain.

Mom has somehow convinced her hydrangeas that they are really growing in Portland, Oregon and not Boise, Idaho.

Living is not enough...one must have sunshine, freedom, and a little flower

~Hans Christen Andersen

Happy Birthday Mom! Hope the weather is nice enough for you to enjoy tottering in your garden at least a little bit.

Liberal Learning

One of the things I love most about home educating my children are the many opportunities it affords me to learn, learn, learn. Yesterday I half joked with Artist Son that when I graduate my last child that I am going to throw a 'graduation' party for...myself! For, truly, I have learned so much through the process of educating my children and have received the gift of a liberal education~an education which somehow eluded me through my school and college years. And it has been more than once that the thought of formally returning to higher education has flitted across my mind. How, what, and where would I want to study? Wouldn't it be wonderful to study in a formal Great Books program? Daydreams, all, for the the time being and maybe forever, but fun daydreams all the same.

So when I saw the book below, Racing Odysseus, in an Oberlin bookstore, the subtitle caught my eye:

"A college president becomes a freshman again."

Hey, this guy really did it! He went back to college! And not just any college--he entered St. John's, the iconic Great Books college in Annapolis, Maryland. And, he was clever enough to write a book about his experience.



Racing Odysseus

I am thankful that he did. This was my 'fun' read on in the car and on the plane back to Jordan last month.

I've heard a couple people suggest that Baby Boomers (of which I am at the tail-end) want to live vicariously through their own children's college experiences, remembering their own college years as the best times of their lives. Perhaps. I do remember my college days with great fondness, yea even as some of the best years of my life, but mostly for the experiences I enjoyed, the relationships I made, the personal growing I did. Unfortunately, and likely due in part to my own immaturity and lack of foresight, I do not remember my academic experiences to be very stimulating or life-forming. Pragmatic and perfunctory are adjectives which come to mind. Academics, though only a part of the college experience, is the part I think I would like a second chance at.

When Roger Martin, the author of Racing Odysseus, entered St. John's College, he was a 61 year old who had recently survived a cancer death sentence. On sabbatical from his position of college president at Randolph-Macon college, Martin attends St. Johns for one semester so that he can write a book from a student's perspective. I thoroughly enjoyed his affable and humble "confessions of a freshman" through which he thoughtfully and entertainingly wove stories of how, through a taste of a Great Books/liberal arts education, he came to to a better understanding of what it means to be human. His book makes an compelling argument for a liberal arts education, and not without touching upon some of the areas in which it has been criticized, i.e. not preparing a student for a specialized occupation. I would recommend this book to anyone who believes it is never too late to continue learning and who in fact would embrace the chance to continue their education later in life.

Lessons Learned

In addition to all the mind-expanding lessons Oldest Daughter is learning in her first semester of college, she is learning some very practical life lessons. Here are a few she has learned this week:

1. If you don't wash your coffee mug you may end up growing a biology lab-worthy culture in it.

2. There's no such thing as free merchandise as offered on the internet (a modern day version of the 'no such thing as a free lunch' lesson).

3. Don't be so overeager to wear your new fashionista rain-boots that you depend on the internet weather forecast of thundershowers...and then end up wearing your oh-so noticeable boots all over campus on a precipitation-free day.

Thanks for the chuckles, Oldest Daughter : )

A not so interesting post: Recipe for Apricot -Ginger Scones

Not terribly exciting, but I thought a few people might find a recipe for Apricot-Ginger Scones interesting. Apparently not 16 year old males. Tonight, Active Son suggested I post something 'interesting' on my blog, something not-about-food. Suggestions? Oh, maybe something like Active Son's surge of motivation to run a 21K (half marathon) in December and the ensuing flurry of running activity which Active Son has been enjoying. Maybe. But first a recipe for Apricot Ginger Scones. It is just that time of year that I am enjoying a surge of baking energy and this is a recipe I'd been wanting to try for awhile now. In fact it was clipped from a Sunset magazine (date?) years ago and stored in a Recipes I Really Want To Try Someday file. Great recipe, delicious scones. The five of us (not six) polished them off in about half an hour--except for the one I spirited away to the back of the kitchen cabinet so that I could enjoy it later.

Apricot-Ginger Scones

3 1/4 cup flour
1/3 cup sugar
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon each baking soda and salt
3/4 cup of butter cut into small pieces
3/4 cup diced dried apricots
1/3 cup diced crystallized ginger (or a lesser amount of fresh grated ginger mixed with a little sugar?)
1 teaspoon grated lemon peel
1 cup buttermilk (or 1 cup milk + 1 tsp. white vinegar for those in a land of no buttermilk)

In a large bowl or mixer mix together flour, sugar, baking powder, soda, and salt. Add butter and mix or rub with fingers (or fork) until coarse crumbs form. Stir in apricots, ginger, and lemon peel. Add buttermilk and mix just until evenly moistened. Scrape dough onto a floured board and knead about 6 turns or until dough holds together. On a lightly greased baking sheet, pat dough into an oval about 7X12 inches (or a little larger--I think mine was). With a floured knife, cut diagonal lines through dough, forming 8 or 9 (or more) triangles. Bake in a 400 degree F oven until golden brown, about 25 minutes.

I added a no-measurements glaze:

powdered sugar
a little butter
milk, adding a little at a time until the glaze reaches the 'right' consistency.

I am already imagining variations to try: cranberry-orange, chocolate with peanut butter glaze, apple-pecan with maple glaze...

30 Seconds of Rain

Yesterday Amman received its first rainfall since March. And it lasted approximately 3o seconds. Not really enough to wash away the months of accumulated dust but it was enough to bring expectant children running outside and to give the air a fresh, autumn scent. Thirty seconds of rain in September in Amman is something to be thankful for as any precipitation this early in the fall is unusual.

Today we had a real rainfall, this time lasting about 30 minutes. The olive harvest traditionally commences after the first rain of the season but Dear Husband wonders if it will this year as it is still early and the olives don't appear ready.

As usual, the welcome cool weather of fall, even if only temporary before the heat returns for one last appearance, brings on a fit of culinary activity: Yesterday it was apricot-ginger scones (polished off in half an hour), four loaves of bread, and gallons of salsa. Today it was potato soup and tomorrow it will be fig preserves and an apple cobbler. My husband and the teen-age boys are happy for the cool-weather inspiration I have received!

A Long Awaited Musical Moment

Artist Son had the beat before he had words. As a toddler he kept time with his hands whenever he heard music and as he grew he began working out rhythms with his hands or anything else he could use as instruments. And though he seemed a born percussionist, we took the whole drum-set thing very slowly and cautiously, beginning Artist Son's musical studies on the piano, Arab tabli (hand-drum) and a little orchestra percussion. And though he has been longing to play a trap set for many years, Artist Son has persevered, with excellence, through the other musical challenges put before him.

He patiently asked again last year if "this could be the year" in which he could take lessons on a trap set. Again we asked him to wait--one more year, while we worked to launch Oldest Daughter into her musical orbit of conservatory studies.

So now, the happy (and loud) time has arrived for Artist Son. Upon returning to Jordan this fall we took assessment of our means to purchase a trap set: no used market to speak of and new prices are considerably higher than US prices. However, we were able to sell a no-longer-played clarinet and Artist Son's beginning snare drum to raise half the price. Artist son contributed a big part of his summer earnings and there was just a bit more to add to reach the price of a new trap-set.

In his parental pragmatism, Dear husband had decided that an electronic drum set would be the best way to go. No sound for us or the neighbors during practice and solo jam sessions. I longed for him to be correct, however I had a idea in the back of my admittedly non-musical mind that Artist Son should begin on an acoustic set as they have a feel all their own and he would be learning technique for the first time. Artist Son's new drum teacher confirmed my suspicions: Artist son should begin on an acoustic set.

So far a close-the-door policy is the best we've done on muting the sound for the rest of the household while Artist Son happily bangs away, albeit with very good rhythm. Dear Husband tells me that for a mere $150 we can purchase muting pads for the drum heads and I think we're agreed that this will be a good investment.

As for the jam sessions, they have begun in earnest, and it looks like they won't all be solo: Dear husband took his guitar in today and I could barely hear it and Dear husband's voice above the beat.

"Update on the life of your college student"

This was the title of the most recent email from Oldest Daughter, now in her second week of classes at Oberlin College/Conservatory. It was one of those emails which just blesses the heart of a parent, one which you read more than a couple of times, and then since you just have to share it with someone, you forward it to the grandparents!

I am very thankful that Dear Husband and I were able to travel to Oberlin for the parent orientation a few weeks ago and help Oldest Daughter settle into her new surroundings before returning to Jordan last week, and so now, when she tells us of her life at Oberlin, her classes, her teachers, her friends, and happenings around the Con, we are able to understand a little better what she is talking about, having visited the campus and having met some faculty and friends.

So here is Oldest Daughter's essential update, annotated by Mom:

Private Teacher: Oldest daughter has had two private lessons with her new teacher (as well as daily group lessons during orientation week) and feels that she will work well with her teacher. She describes him as "very intelligent, thought out, and intentional in his teaching, as well as hard to please--all good qualities." He is very happy with Oldest Daughter's left hand (as in how it plays the violin) and sends his compliments to her former teacher.

Hanging out in the conservatory (Con) lounge

Classes: Lots of work, lots of quizzes, but Oldest Daughter is learning lots. So far she is pacing herself well and keeping up with homework.

Happy Roommates--a great match

Roomate: Oldest Daughter couldn't have been blessed with a better one! They've already talked about rooming together next year. Her roommate is a fellow Con student (voice) an international student (Canadian), and they have lots in common, most importantly their faith in God.

Music Nerds

Friends: When I attended college, I never went anywhere near a music class and I didn't have musician friends but I did notice that many of the music majors hung out together and they seemed to be having lots of fun together. Even as an outsider (like, way outside) I could see that their music somehow bound them together. And so Oldest Daughter is enjoying being a music nerd (her own words) and spending time with lots of other music nerds. And nerd is definitely not meant pejoratively here--I thoroughly enjoyed meeting some of her friends on campus and found them to be very 'cool', articulate, and interesting people.

Spiritual Life: Oldest Daughter and her roommate are attending Oberlin Christian Fellowship (OCF), a weekly Bible study in their dorm (studying the book of Acts), and are attending church together on Sunday mornings. They also joined an online prayer group so that they can pray for each other.

Rest: This is the only area of Oldest Daughter's collegiate life which doesn't receive an A grade, but it seems she is doing the best she can for the time being. Dear Husband added up Oldest Daughter's class, rehearsal, and personal practice hours: 51 hours a week--not counting homework. It doesn't help that she receives only one credit for chamber orchestra, which meets three times a week, two hours a time. Such is the life of music major. She pretty much works from morning till night five days a week, finishes up homework and practicing on Saturday, and rests on Sunday--mostly.

Though many miles now separate us and we miss her very much, we rejoice in all that God has provided for Oldest Daughter and for the wonderful opportunities she is experiencing to learn, to grow, and to mature. We are also thankful for Vonage, Skype, email, and Facebook--so many great, easy ways to stay in touch.

Blogging to Stay Awake

Just one more hour and I will allow myself to go to sleep: we returned home from the US this morning and are making ourselves stay up in an attempt to deal with the inevitable jet lag. We flew out of Salt Lake City about 26 hours ago and enjoyed one of our best ever international flights, a non-stop on Delta from NYC to Amman. The only blight on the flight was unruly children. Two in particular, seated across the aisle from us, were little terrors who would not stay in their seat and their mother 'couldn't' make them. Or so she told the incredulous flight attendant.

In the last week we traveled to Ohio to take Oldest daughter to college, back to Boise to do last-minute shopping, pack eleven suitcases to as close to 50 pounds as we could get them plus 10 substantial carry-ons, said good-byes to dear family and friends, drove to Salt Lake City to catch our flight to NYC, and returned to home-sweet-home, Jordan. We all agree that it is good to be home.

Because He First Loved Me

Somewhere back in my college days, when I was at a point of wanting to know God more deeply, I remember an older Christian sister asking me"Why do you love God?" Her question was asked so pointedly and intently that I was momentarily taken off guard and remained silent, thinking, thinking. The answer soon flooded over my soul: "I love God because He first loved me!" (1 John 4:19)

Last week I finished reading the recently published Because He loves Me, How Christ Transforms Our Daily Life by Elyse Fitzpatrick and the memory of that epiphan-ous moment of 20+ years ago came back to me. What I didn't really realize so many years ago, but have been learning the past couple of years or so, is that the gospel, or, the good news of Jesus Christ, is daily, yea, even hourly, the foundation of a transformed life.



Because He Loves Me

Fitzpatrick divides her book into two parts:

I. How God's Love Transforms Our Identity
II. How God's Love Transforms Our Life

The first part of the book is largely a reiteration and exploration of the gospel, and though an older Christian may be tempted to skim through chapters with titles such as Remembering His Love, Identity Gift, Your Inheritance, this temptation should be resisted. For the truths of the gospel to do their transforming work in our lives, we must live by them, and thus, as a forgetful people we must marinate ourselves in them.

This becomes even more clear as Fitzpatrick moves into part II of her book, laying out just how the gospel transforms in chapters such as Be Who You Are, I will Cleanse You, Walk in Love, and Take Courage, Your Sins Are Forgiven. I particularly benefited from the discussion of the indicative and imperative components of the gospel, or the 'gospel declaration' and the 'gospel obligation' from Chapter 10, Be Who You Are. Both components of the gospel must be present or in balance lest we become moralists, over emphasizing the obligation, or libertarians, over emphasizing declaration. I tend to the moralist camp, myself!

Examples of this perfect declaration/obligation synergy are found throughout Scripture:

If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God (indicative). Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth (imperative). For you have died and your live is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory (indicative). Put to death therefore what is earthly in you (imperative)...

~Colossians 3:1-5a

and another quick example from Philippians 2:

Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence work out your own salvation with fear and trembling (imperative) for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure (indicative).

~Philippians 2:12,13

Fitzpatrick writes, "please remember that your growth in holiness is firmly bound to your appreciation of the gospel and God's love, for it is only an appreciation of his love that can motivate genuine obedience."

Also good is chapter 10, Take Courage; Your Sins are Forgiven, in which Fitzpatrick takes a couple of real-life sin situations and explains how Christ's incarnation, sinless life, crucifixion, resurrection, and ascension each can have a transforming impact. Good stuff.

I have a sexist confession to make: I usually don't read or like theological books by women authors. I haven't thought too deeply about why this is but I just don't. Maybe it is the cute illustrations or the overuse of exclamation marks? Anyway, while this book has a few of the illustrations I shy away from, the content of the book is excellent and theologically meaty, yet easily understandable and practical--not in the pragmatic sense, but in the the life-changing-if you apply-it sense. I've already given my copy of this book to a dear friend who was passing through and I plan to re-order for myself and for a few friends. And, as an added bonus, this book could easily replace a number of 'life issues' books--the ones which tell you how to overcome this or that-- you may have sitting on your shelves.

Edit: my links are dead but I'm leaving town early in the morning and don't have the time to fix them now. Sorry.

A Northwest Summer, so far

As we've traveled 'home' this summer, I've been reminded anew just what a beautiful and wonderful place the Northwest is. The weather is near perfect: cool mornings, warm days--okay, hot, but everyone has air!--cool evenings, occasional rain or blustery thunderstorms, the scenery, stunning, and there are abundant opportunities for recreation, if only hiking through breathtakingly beautiful meadows, foothills, etc. We count ourselves blessed to enjoy the refreshment of God's awesome creation this summer and if you've never been to the northwest United States, you must visit sometime!

Dear friends, Tim and Jan, always get us out on the water. Both sons have learned to ski behind their boats and we've all enjoyed lots of water fun during our Idaho summers because of their generous hospitality. Dear husband still has the moves though he agreed to no hotdogging this summer after it yielded broken or at least very bruised ribs two summers ago.

Most of us learned to surf this summer. I enjoyed this; a gentler way to enjoy the water than skiing. Less impact on falls, as well!

My favorite water sport: a wild and crazy tube ride!

Visiting friends in the Olympic peninisula, we enjoyed an afternoon of gorgeous scenery at Hurricane Ridge, Olympia State Park, Washington. They must have had a great winter as there was still a fair amount of snow and the wildflowers were profuse and beautiful, especially the lupine.




The wildlife was not very wild so we enjoyed some close-up viewing and Artist son was able to add some sketches to his newly begun nature journal.


And back to Idaho:

Last weekend Dear Husband and Artist Son enjoyed their first backpacking adventure together, hiking 11 miles up to Baron Lake near Stanley, Idaho. Elevation 8,200 feet.

The backpackers at their campsite in the beautiful Sawtooth Mountains.

Let all creation declare the majesty of its Creator!

A Middle Eastern/North African Meal

One of the things we enjoy when we are back in the States is preparing a Middle Eastern meal for family and friends. This week, I, with the help of my children, dear mother, and a few other friends, prepared and served a lunch for about 120 people. We prepared the main dish on one afternoon, the couscous another morning, and the salad was put together just before the lunch.

This year I chose some recipes which were more North African (Tunisia, Morocco) in origin, though the ingredients and flavors are found throughout the Middle East. All three recipes were inspired from those found in the Australian Women's Weekly Middle Eastern Cooking Class.



Women's Weekly Middle Eastern Cooking School Class

For the main dish we served Chicken Tagine with Dates and Honey. Tagines are slow cooked stews of North African origin, traditional cooked in special clay pots. Ours was cooked in stainless steel pots on electric burners.

Chicken Tagine with Dates and Honey

2 lbs chicken breasts cut in to strips or chunks
2 tablesppons olive oil
2 medium onions, finely sliced
4 cloves of garlic, minced
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground tumeric
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1 1/2 cups chicken stock
1 cup water
1/2 cup seedless dates, halved
1/4 cup honey
1/2 cup blanched almonds, toasted
2 chopped fresh coriander leaves

1. Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a pan, add chicken and cook, stirring, until browned. Remove from pan.
2. Heat remaining oil in the same pan, add onions and garlic. When onions are nearly soft, add all the spices and continue cooking, stirring, until onions are soft.
3. Return chicken to pan with stock and water and simmer covered for one hour. Remove lid and simmer for about 30 minutes or until mixture is thickened slightly and chicken is tender.
4. Stir in dates, honey, and nuts. Sprinkle with fresh coriander (cilantro).

Serves 4-6

The chicken tagine was served with couscous:

Almond Coriander (Cilantro) Couscous

3 cups couscous
3 (or 4) cups boiling water---or better, us the quantities of couscous and water as directed on the package of couscous. I usually decrease the water a bit so that the couscous isn't too wet.
1/4 cup olive oil
1-2 cloves garlic, minced
2-3 green onions, chopped
3/4 cup slivered almonds, toasted
1/2 cup chopped fresh coriander leaves

1. Heat water (I add a tablespoon of olive oil) to boiling. Take water off the heat, add couscous, and let sit for about 5 minutes, covered, or until the water is absorbed. Fluff couscous with a fork.
2. Heat oil in a large pan, add garlic and onions, cook, stirring, until onions are soft. Add the onion mixture to the couscous.
3. Stir nuts and coriander into the couscous mixture.

And, the salad:

Tomato, Feta, and Green Onion Salad

1 lb. feta cheese
4 medium onions
1/3 cup olive oil
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
3-4 green onions, finely chopped
2 tablespoons chopped fresh mint
2 tablespoons chopped walnuts, toasted
3 teaspoons sesame seeds, toasted

1. Cut tomatoes into wedges, remove seeds, and chop tomatoes finely.
2. Whisk oil and juice in small bowl until combined; add onions and mint. Mix well.
3. Combine the mint mixture with the tomatoes and let marinate for about 1 hour.
4. Crumble the cheese in (about) 1/2 inch chunks on a plate or platter.
5. Spoon tomato mixture over the crumbled cheese and sprinkle with the toasted walnuts and sesame seeds.

Confession: If I were serve this meal to Middle Eastern friends it would be considered a light meal. Besides the three dishes above I would need to serve at least one other main dish, at least one more salad, olives, and flat bread. And even then, this amount of food would be acceptable only because I am a foreigner.

Sahtayn! (Double your health)

Linguistic Irony

It strikes me as ironic, in this age of linguistic fluidity and relativity, the reply I am receiving from the younger generation in response to my inquiries:

"Absolutely!"

"Mom, You're such a geek."

I received this comment from Artist Son with a smile as it was given with a smile and was not at all pejorative in nature. Truly, I had just enjoyed an afternoon of unadulterated geekiness (except for the M&M's); while the fam headed to the local pool to cool off in the scorching Arizona heat, I stayed at home, afraid to subject my finally subsiding major-allergic-reaction-to-who-knows-what-hives to sun and chlorine, to read philosophy, ponder, and write book notes. At my disciplined best, I try to summarize each chapter I read, but I am not often at my disciplined best. My usual MO is to underline, star and bracket (pencil only) and then, when time allows, to write or type up my 'book notes', adding some summary on the fly where I can.

School's out and I've just begun three books that have been on my shelves for some time. As I prepare to dive into a study of Ancient Literature for our Great Books Course next fall (second time)it think these books will help prepare me, as a tutor to guide my students, Active Son and Artist Son:

The Greek Way, Edith Hamilton



A wonderful book, so far, by the late classicist, Edith Hamilton, explaining the Greek mind and the it's impact on and contribution to Western Civilization. I read the first several chapters of this book on our international flight but left it on our domestic connection--thankfully, Delta has retreived it and it is waiting for me at the baggage claim.

Six Great Ideas, Mortimer J. Adler



I'm about a third of the way through Alder's primer on philosophy and his discussion of the six great ideas of truth, goodness, beauty, and liberty, equality, and justice, which the ancients gave such particular and in depth attention to is sparking lots of teaching ideas for next fall. For some years I have felt that philosophy is the subject or, better, way of thinking, which is sorely absent from education. I am in full agreement with Alder that philosophy is everybody's business:

"It cannot be too often repeated that philosophy is everybody's business. To be a human being is to be endowed with the proclivity to philosophize. "

"It is also necessary to understand why this is so and what philosophy's business is. The answer in a word, is ideas. In two words, it is great ideas..."

Orthodoxy,G.K.Chesterton



Chesterton presents his essays on orthodoxy as autobiographical however he "will not call it my philosophy; for I did not make it. God and humanity made it; and it made me." I'm not completely sure how this one is going to dovetail with the other two, but after just two chapters, I'm pretty confident it will.

One thought I'm pondering, particularly as we re-enter American culture:

..But nearly all people I have ever met in this western society in which I live would agree to the general proposition that we need this life of practical romance; the combination of something that is strange with something that is secure. We need to view the world as to combine an idea of wonder and an idea of welcome. We need to be happy in this wonderland without once being merely comfortable.

Traveling~

Tomorrow morning we leave for the States where we will spend the next couple of months plus connecting with family and friends, 'taking care of business', and taking Oldest Daughter to college. I thought I had preparations pretty well in hand but I was thrown a bit off balance by family illness: Active Son has a tiring cold virus and Tayta was sick to her stomach four times throughout the night. She seems to have stabilized but I put her to bed tonight with a "jiggly" stomach and a fever. As for me, I thought I was handling things pretty well and wasn't feeling too stressed, but apparently, not: this morning I began breaking out in hives. First my face and then my torso. Most annoying, but at least I have been able to carry on.

A special thanks to Dr. Angie who gave Oldest Daughter her two necessary vaccinations this morning, prescribed something for me and gave me advice regarding Tayta.

We'll arrive in Arizona tomorrow night, and then move on to Idaho on the 17th, so probably no blogging until I resurface in Boise.

The Violin Adventure

Caveat: A long story

With all the relief which came with Oldest Daughter's acceptance into music school, we soon began to consider the inevitable issue which we had conveniently and, perhaps, necessarily, put out of our minds: Oldest Daughter would soon need a new violin. There is no question why I didn't enjoy dwelling on this not yet urgent but impending need: 1. It could and probably would be costly. I really didn't want to think about how much it could be but I knew the possibilities and they weren't encouraging. 2. Even if we could afford it, finding a suitable instrument could entail a lot of searching, shipping of violins cross country, etc. One cello mom informed me that it took over a year to find their daughter's last instrument. Oldest Daughter didn't nag or despair but when she mentioned her need and uncertainty I admitted the challenges and encouraged her to pray.

God, in his Goodness, provided.

About three weeks ago Oldest Daughter's violin teacher received a call from his rising-star-violinist-son who studies in Germany. The violinist-son was performing in Spain and knew a Hungarian man who was selling several violins to raise cash. Violinist-son had played a couple of concerts on one of the violins, French-made, which the Hungarian was selling and called his father in Jordan to sing its praises--and to tell him that the violin was valued at at least twice the selling price. In other words, an exceptional instrument which violinist-son wanted to purchase himself but couldn't, for sale at a price far under its value. If Oldest Daughter wanted it, she would have the first option to purchase it.

Now, I am not very experienced in the realm of violin purchasing, however I do know that it is pretty much unheard of for a musician of Oldest Daughter's caliber to purchase an instrument sight unseen and, more importantly, sound unheard. It's just not done. However, we trusted violinist-son implicitly. We agreed to purchase the violin. But how to get the violin from Spain to Jordan?

The first step was easy. Violinist-son brought the violin back home to Germany; however, he was soon leaving for a European tour and couldn't help any further. Shipping really wasn't an option, even with insurance, as there was no telling what would happen once the violin arrived in Jordan. Customs would likely be high and it could be a major hassle to get it out. The violin needed to be hand- carried from Germany, and, before we traveled to the States on June 12.

Next, I sent an email to many friends in Jordan, hoping that someone knew someone traveling through the Frankfurt airport on their way to Amman. On friend wrote back suggesting I call another friend whom I had neglected to include in the group email. I called the second friend, who at first thought said he didn't know of anyone coming this way, but on second thought remembered a friend who would soon be traveling to Jordan on business. I contacted this German businessman via email and he graciously replied that he would be glad to help out by carrying the violin to Jordan--we just needed to get it to him at the Frankfurt airport before departure. The violin was several hours away by train, in Duisdorf, near Cologne.

The next email went to a dear German friend who lived in Jordan for five years and is now living very near the Frankfurt airport. She was thrilled to be included in what was now becoming known as the "violin adventure" and graciously agreed to help however she could. When I told her our dilemma concerning the present location of the violin she wrote back that her sister-in-law, who lives in Duisdorf, was planning to come to Frankfurt that weekend!

So, violinist-son's sister, a harpist also studying in Germany, delivered the violin to my friend's sister-in-law. A few days later my friend came into possession of the precious instrument, which she, in turn, delivered to the German businessman at the Frankfurt airport (I has hoping they wouldn't ask any of those security questions, like "did someone you don't know give you something to take on this flight."). At about 8pm last night we received a call from the German businessman informing us that he had arrived and that we could meet him at his hotel to pick up the violin.

Dear Husband and I drove to the hotel and while he parked the car I waited in the lobby, watching for someone carrying a violin case. Within a couple of minutes, in strode a German couple, carrying hand luggage and a violin case; I approached them and introduced myself. The German businessman told me that he had actually decided not to make this particular trip to Jordan, but had changed his mind shortly before receiving my email--he was sure that God was involved in all the details and was very glad to have helped us. After heartfelt thanks and handshakes, we headed home.

The violin is beautiful and the sound, gorgeous--it produces a much fuller and richer sound than Oldest Daughter's old violin. This evening Oldest Daughter's violin teacher came to inspect and hear the violin and concurred with our conclusion: the violin is perfect for Oldest Daughter. And, she is able to sell her old violin to a fellow violin player here in Jordan, where good instruments are extremely hard to come by.

We are thanking God for this perfect provision. Dear Husband's only lament is that, as Oldest Daughter departs for music school in August, we have only a few short months to enjoy listening to Oldest Daughter practice on this beautiful new instrument.

A Violin Recital

As the lone senior in her homeschool senior class, Oldest Daughter decided that she didn't want to have a traditional graduation ceremony--too much pomp and circumstance focused on just one person, she felt. Instead, she decided to invite all her friends to a senior violin recital, her last before leaving Jordan. She and her teacher planned a delightful program:

J.S. Bach~ Sonata 1 for Solo Violin, Adagio and Presto

J.S. Bach~Double Violin Concerto, 1st movement
(played with her teacher)
E. Lalo~Symphonie Espanole, IV movement
Jean Sibelius~Violin Concerto, Allegro moderato
J. Massenet~ 'Meditation'
Peter Tchaikovsky~'Russian Dance' from the ballet Swan Lake
Rimsky-Korsakoff~'Arabian Song' from Scheherazade
Arr. Fritz Kreisler
Pablo de Sarasate~Zigeunerweisen (Gypsy Airs)

Oldest daughter included this Note to the Audience:

Ever since I was a little girl, I have wished I could sing. I can sing, but I can't 'sing'. Instead, at the age of six, I embarked on a journey which is by no means over. I started taking violin lessons. Throughout the years I've found that the violin, the only instrument which can imitate the sound of a woman's voice, can not only sing, it can laugh and cry, dance and sleep, meditate and pray, speak and whisper, explode in fits of emotion and bursts of passion. It can allow you to hear what it is to be joyful, what it is to love, and what it is to mourn.

The ancient Greek philosopher, Plato, believed that the beauty we sense is merely an imitation of a higher, more perfect immaterial beauty. It is a shadow of true Beauty, which comes only from God, Himself. I hope that I can help you see things with your soul as well as your eyes. Close your eyes if it will help you see the music, and let the music show itself to you. Music is not a common thing; it is a rare treasure. Please enjoy my humble efforts to present a bit of what I've discovered along my journey. Thank God for the beautiful gift of music he's given us, and for allowing us to enjoy it.

It was truly a grand evening, with many friends gathered to celebrate with Oldest Daughter and to enjoy the beautiful music which she shared with us all.

Though difficult to choose which pieces to post here, I've decided on Gypsy Airs and Russian Dance. However, Lalo and the Bach Sonata are lovely too. And, if you've a little time, you'll want to listen to Sibelius--very dramatic and I had to upload it in two clips as it is about 13 minutes long. This was Oldest Daughter's audition concerto movement--though she played only about the first 3-5 minutes of it for most auditions. All nine videos can be accessed via my YouTube page.



Russian Dance, Peter Tchaikovsky


Gypsy Airs, Pablo de Sarasate