Happy Birthday, Future Man

A few years ago a friend with grown children commented to me that "it is a beautiful thing to watch a boy turn into a man." My own sons were only about eight and ten years old at the time but she made the comment with such a twinkle of wonder in her eye that I remembered her words. Another observation which stuck with me, this one made by author Douglas Wilson in the introduction to his book "Future Men", is "Boys take a lot of faith". I would say that these two sentiments, mingled together, just about encapsulate all of what I've experienced in raising Active Son to the nearly-on-the-brink-of-manhood age of 15. Yes, it is beautiful(those muscles!) and filled with wonder. And yes, it does take a lot of faith.

Active son fills our lives and home with, well, action. He is moving around a lot of the time and if there is any sort of spherical object lying around, it quickly finds it way into his hands. Those same fidgety fingers play a beautiful Mozart and are often instrumental in helping out around the house and garden. An ordered home is important to this young man!

Now in his first year of high school, Active Son, is working hard to do what it takes to become a good student and active learner. He has joined Oldest Daughter and me for a weekly discussion of the Great Books; today we read this introduction to the poetry of John Donne: "You will rarely find more moving language than “Batter my heart, three person’d God; for, you/As yet but knocke, breathe, shine, and seeke to mend . . .”

"The language that moves me," responded Active Son, "is 'Defense!'" I hear that and and I move down the field!

Growing up isn't easy and neither is it easy letting Active Son grow up. I haven't always done a good job of "looking at the present and seeing what it will become, by grace and good works"(Future Men). Just last week Active Son and I were sparring over something so significant I can't even remember what it was. What I remember was my comment to him and his response:

Mom: (half joking/half serious) Oh, grow up!
Active Son:(also half joking/half serious) That's what I'm trying to do!

That brought a knowing smile to both our faces.

Happy Birthday, Active Son. You are a wonderful heritage from the Lord (Psalm 127:3)

Indian Food 101~Butter Chicken

This chicken dish was my first attempt at Indian cooking and it fast became a family favorite. Additionally, it fits all my requirements for a great dish: easy to fix, healthy (mostly), economical, and delicious. It includes a couple of spices you may not have on hand (green cardamon pods and garam masala) but once you secure these you will have enough to make many delicious batches of Butter Chicken. This recipe came to me from two friends: I received it from one friend who received it from a mutual British friend who grew up in India.

Marinate 2 lbs. of cut up chicken breasts in the following mixture for 1-2 hours:

2/3 cup yogurt
1/2 cup ground blanched almonds (I grind them in my blender)
1 1/2 tsp. chili powder
2 bay leaves
1/4 ground cloves
1 tsp. garam masala
4 green cardamon pods
1 tsp. ginger
1/2 cloves garlic, minced
14 oz. can chopped or pureed tomatoes
1 1/2 tsp. salt

Melt in large cooking pot:
6 Tsp. butter
1 Tsp. oil

Add:
2 large onions, sliced and fry until lightly browned

Add:
chicken mixture (chicken + marinade)

Simmer until chicken is cooked through and stir in:
4 Tsp. cream

(Remove the bay leaves and the cardamon pods, if you can find them)

I serve this with brown or white basmati rice. Serves about 6. I double this for a great company dish.

Soundtrack for the next year: Sibelius violin concerto

Maxim Vengerov - Sibelius - Allegro Moderato part I

Oldest daughter has chosen the concerto she will prepare for music school auditions next year; she had thought she would play the Tchaikovsky but decided that the Sibelius is the one she loves. And since she will be practicing this for hundreds of hours over the course of the next year, it is nice that she can choose the one she loves. As for me, I love them both and the Mendelssohn would have been a delight to listen to all year long as well. Anything but Paganini!

Growing up~

It happens all too quickly, doesn't it? One day they are celebrating their 2nd birthday and before you know it they are escorting their older sister to a Valentine's Banquet. Call me old fashioned, but I'm glad that Oldest Daughter's and Active Son's first "date" was with each other. Amidst the flurry of the pre-banquet dressing ritual Oldest Daughter threw a comment over her shoulder to Active Son, "This is one time when you are lucky to be a male!" And so he was: Active Son was dressed and ready for the banquet in five minutes flat.

Yes Virgina, there is love in marriage after 20 years~

Today my oldest daughter caught me thinking out-loud as to whether or not Dear Husband and I would go out for dinner together on Valentine's Day. The reality is that tomorrow is a busy day which means we'll be tired by the end of it, all the resturaunts in town will be packed and smoky to boot, so actually, I would much rather relax at home with our family. Romantic daughter sighed, "Is this what becomes of you after you've been married for 20 years?"

The short answer: yes. I will let John Piper give the long answer as he does so beautifully in the article, "Is Pastor John in love with his wife? You decide.

"If you turn a jar on its mouth,

goes an old Arabic proverb, "out comes a daughter like her mother." Trust me, it sounds much more poetic in Arabic.

In a general sense, this saying is often true, thus the proverb. And because of it's truth, I have not always fully appreciated the uniqueness of my dear daughter. I recently realized that, at times, I viewed her as simply a new and improved, more accomplished version of myself.

Oh yes, my daughter and I have much in common, which must account for the many times she hears, "You _____ just like your mother!" I am truly thankful for the commonalities, some so subtle as to be indiscernable by us, which bind us together. However, I am also learning to notice and enjoy all my daughter'sparticular and distinctive qualities, celebrating the young woman God has created her to be.

And now that my oldest child is celebrating her seventeenth birthday, I find that our relationship is taking on new dimensions, my daughter becoming more and more a friend, a confidante, and a sister in Christ.

Happy Birthday, Dear Daughter. Your life is a rich blessing to me and I look forward to all we will share together in the coming year!

Dead to Red, a few pictures

Still stiff and sleep deprived from running 25 K (25X 1K) through the desert in the middle of the night, my husband remarked with a deep sense of contentment, "The Dead to Red race weekend is just about my favorite weekend of the year." Though some women participate in the race, I would never consider joining in, and not because of the grueling physical exertion it would demand of me. Really.

No, the Dead to Red is more than just an annual crazy relay race through the desert. It is serious, and I mean serious, male bonding time. No way I'd want to interrupt that.

Active Son at the race start

Younger son preparing for his turn to run

Dr. T hands off to Younger Son

007 hands off to Dear Husband

Another great Dashing Dude hand-off

After-the-race banquet

Some of the Dudes celebrating

As for what the females where doing while the males were bonding, I mean running: let's just say that it took place indoors, and that it involved friends, good food, cheesecake, a movie, and sleeping in too late.

They're Off

The Dashing Dudes left Amman this afternoon, headed for the starting line of the Dead to Red relay marathon. Their ten man relay team will run from the Dead Sea to the Red Sea, 250K, attempting to beat their 17 hour 13 minute time of last year.

After months of training the anticipation of running the race was undeniable; dear husband could hardly sit still in his chair during morning devotions and Active Son did his best to concentrate on his morning studies. By noon, all thoughts were on the race. We wish the Dashing Dudes all the best as they run through desert tonight!

Update: (1:15 a.m. GMT+2) I talked with Active Son who is leading the five members of the team in Van A and with dear husband, who is heading up Van B. Both sound amazingly awake and energized and I think the fact that they are running hard to hold onto their 2nd place standing has something to do with that. One of ten teams participating in the relay marathon, they are outrun at this point only by the Jordanian National Team, however it sounds like they will have to continue the hard pace into Aqaba if they hope to hold onto 2nd.

The young bucks of Van A have been running 1/2K sprints in an effort to stay ahead of the third place Haddadin team, which is only about 1K behind. Not much in a 250K run. We are praying for Dr. T. of Van B who seems to have come down with a stomach bug and had to sit out a leg. The loss of even one team member at this point could seriously hinder the Dashing Dudes in their bid for the 2nd place win. Having completed 170K , the Dashing Dudes hope to arrive in Aqaba around 7am this morning. Go Dashing Dudes!!

Update: (This update is a little sketchy as I was half asleep when I received the call from my husband. I'll fill in the missing details in a later update.) The Dashing Dudes finished the race in third place; though second place eluded them by about 15 minutes, the Dashing Dudes shaved 30 minutes off their race time of last year finishing in 16 hours and 43 minutes, and that just 30 minutes behind the Jordan National Team. Praise God, Dr. T recovered from his debilitating sickeness in two hours and went on to finish running the race, even attempting to make up some of the distance picked up by his fellow runners while he was ill. The team was headed to a favorite resturaunt in Aqaba to enjoy a traditional Arab breakfast of bread, hummus, falafel, and more before checking into their hotel for a few hours of rest before tonight's award and celebration banquet at the Aqaba Movenpick.

For a Knitting Neighbor~

"Mrs. C. is so nice!" exclaimed Younger Daughter as she burst through the kitchen door. Younger Daughter was returning from our dear friend and neighbor's house where Mrs. C. had helped Younger Daughter transform her knitted rectangle into a purse. Added Y.D., "She even gave me some perfect fabric of her own for the lining and she helped me to sew it together! " (picture ear to ear smile on Y.D. as she tells me this).

Y.D. had been wanting to learn how to knit for some time and since this is one of the handicrafts that I have never mastered, I was very thankful when my dear friend offered to teach her; she is one of those special people who patiently teaches others what she herself enjoys. Y.D. loves to pack up her backpack with knitting projects and head down the street to Mrs. C's to receive loving instruction and enjoy some delightful conversation.


Though she only began knitting this fall, Y.D. has already completed five projects under Mrs. C's tutelage. Older Daughter and I were grateful recipients of lovingly hand knit scarves this past Christmas. Y.D. models her handiwork in the picture to the left: the black scarf is mine, the pink is hers and the black and white one is O.D.'s. Y.D. received several skeins of yarn for her recent birthday and she even has a dreamed of yarn drawer (imagine, a whole drawer, just for yarn!), just like Mrs. C. If Y.D. continues to knit at the rate she has been, we can look forward to a full size afghan by next winter!

Thanks, Mrs. C. You're the best!

Art Class: Watercolors 101

We 've had few opportunites for the kids to participate in art classes through the years so I'm particularly thankful for a new artist friend who offered to teach a beginning watercolor class to interested teens. Both sons agreed to join in (I expected the eagerness of one son but was pleasantly surprised by the interest of the other).

Though I'm not participating in the class, by observation I'm learning things as well: As children mature they can relate to their work in a more mature way. When they were young I exclaimed with delight over their simplest artistic efforts. Now, the kids are able to assess their work more objectively and they don't want praise just for the sake of praise. They like some of their work but can honestly say where they feel they can improve, and this without prompting. They are comparing their work to others for the sake of improving their own. They are making judgements about good technique and technique that needs improvement.

I'm taking note, as well, that art takes time. Uninterrupted time. And we usually don't have a lot of that around here. Younger Son is an artist in that he actively pursues working on his art through the days and he intuitively understands the necessity of time in relationship to creating. In fact, he has asked me not to fill his daily schedule with too many activities for this very reason. I don't think that Active Son will continue to pursue art right now, though he is doing well, unless I carve out some time for it once the painting classes end.

A couple of the boys' initial projects

A First Landscape

A First Animal --a bit more challenging that the usual pencil drawings!

Call to Prayer

"Pray to your Father, who is in secret" ~Matthew 6:6

"The Father is in secret: in these words Jesus teaches us where He is waiting us, where He is always to be found. Christians often complain that private prayer is not what it should be. They feel weak and sinful, the heart is cold and dark; it is as if they have so little to pray, and in that little no faith or joy. They are discouraged and kept from prayer by the thought that they cannot come to the Father as they ought or as they wish. Child of God! listen to your Teacher. He tells you that when you go to private prayer your first thought must be: The Father is in secret, the Father waits me there. Just because your heart is cold and prayerless, get you into the presence of the loving Father."

~ from With Christ in the School of Prayer, by Andrew Murray

Cheesecake

I've passed this recipe on to so many people that I thought it would be a good one to start with. And, it came to mind as I made the Lemon Curd version for our family and guests this evening. Cheesecake isn't the kind of dessert I just whip up for the family so it is the first one that the kids request when we have guests for a special dinner.

This tried and true recipe comes from The Fannie Farmer Cookbook, a favorite cookbook of mine, particularly for baking. I've also created a chocolate and a lemon curd variation.

~Lemon Curd Cheesecake~

Cheesecake

Ingredients:
Crust
1 1/3 cup graham cracker or other cookie crumbs
5 T butter, melted
1/4 t. cinnamon
1/4 t. nutmeg
1/4 cup sugar
-----------------
Filling
4 eggs, seperated
1 cup sour cream (or Zabadi with cream for Ammanites)
2 T flour
1 cup sugar, divided
1/4 salt
1 t vanilla
1 lb cream cheese at room temperature (450 g=24 Kiri squares)

Directions:

Combine the crumbs, melted butter, cinamon, nutmeg, and 1/4 cup of the sugar in a bowl and mix well. Butter a springform pan (lightly) and pat the crumb mixture over the bottom and 1 inch up the sides. Chill.

Preheat oven to 325 degrees (F--about 170 C).

Beat the egg yolks with an electric beater until they are thick and pale. Add the sour cream, flour, salt, 3/4 cup of the sugar, and the vanilla, and beat until well blended. Add the cream cheese and beat until smooth. Beat the egg whites until foamy, then gradually beat in the reamining 1/4 cup sugar, beating until the whites are stiff and shiny. Fold into the cream cheese mixture. Spoon into the crumb crust (I place my springform pan on a baking sheet before putting it in the oven because sometimes a little butter leaks from the bottom). Bake about 1 hour or until the center does not trmble when the cake is gently shaken. (It is normal for the cheesecake to crack.) Cool, then chill in the refrigerator.

Variations:

Chocolate: add desired amout of melted chocolate (I use 8 oz, or 225 g) when you add the cream cheese. If desired, garnish with whipped cream flavored with a small amount of cocoa.

Mocha: make the chocolate variation and add 2-3 teaspoons of instant coffee, dissolved in a couple teaspoons of water. If desired, garnish with whipped cream flavored with a small amount of instant coffee or espresso.

Lemon: add 2 teaspoons grated lemon peel and 2 tablespoons lemon juice in place of the vanilla. Top the cooled cheesecake with lemon curd.

Lemon Curd:

1 1/2 t grated lemon zest
6 T lemon juice (1/3 cup)
1 large egg + 1 large yolk
1/2 cup sugar
2 T unslated butter, cut into bits

In the top of a double boiler, combine all the ingredients except the butter. Over gently simmering water, whisk until hot and frothy, about 5 minutes. Gradually whist in butter. Continue whisking 7 minutes or until mixture thickens and coats the back of a spoon. Remove from heat and let cool 1/2 hour.

(This recipe will be filed under the Just Desserts link in the sidebar)

Art Appreciation

It has been too long since we've taken the time to visit an art exhibition; thanks to the interest of an artist friend some of us visited the new Lines Gallery (summer 2006) near First Circle to catch the Mohanna Durra exhibit before it ends this week. We went to the exhibit not knowing much about Mohanna Durra other than he is a well known Jordanian artist and he had painted some beautiful watercolor paintings. His exhibit was, in fact, an interesting juxtoposition of realistic watercolor and abstract acrylic paintings, Durra being the first local artist to introduce abstract and cubist art. The common denominator in his work?

For Mohanna Durra, drawing "is the foundation of his entire artistic vision. The natural easy way in which he catches a rapid movement or the details of a complicated scene suggests a sudden discharge of the artistic impulse...What strikes one most in Durra's drawings is that he
seldom needs more than a few sweeping lines to define with great expression and precision any form or character...His hand moves with the vitality that comes from the whirling winds of the Jordanian desert. The figures are alive, lyrical and moving."
~Maryna L. Viets, 1979

And though we went for the watercolors, we found we could appreciate some of Durra's abstract art as well; some for the use of color, others for the lines and figures found within the painting. We gazed at this painting the longest.



Can you find the four figures in it?

After viewing the exhibition, we headed down to Wild Jordan cafe for a fresh fruit drink. I find its atmosphere and views of the city inspiring, as does my artist son. A thoroughly satisfying journey and we have determined that we must visit the local galleries more--next stop, the National Gallery.

(HT to Roba at Far and Away for the photos of Durra's paintings)

A Belated Birthday Tribute to "Tayta"

A friend once floated the theory that everyone has a fixed psychological age, no matter what their physical age. An interesting thought, and some people are easier to peg than others. My dear, youngest daughter is one such person. She was first lovingly referred to as "tayta" or "grandma" in Arabic by her 2nd grade teacher, who noticed my daughter's tendency to take care of other people. With all the youthful energy of a 10 year old, "tayta" blesses family, friends and strangers with ready smiles, engaging conversation, hand knit scarves, or tea and homemade cookies.

Every family needs at least one extrovert, and this dear daughter is ours. Sometimes it gets a little too easy for us to let her be the face of the family as she is the one always willing to answer the phone or run to neighbors with a message or plate of food. Once, when I had to run out quickly while another friend waited in our home I returned to find my daughter had engaged my friend in a game of "Sorry" in an effort to keep her entertained.

"Tayta" stuffing koosa (zucchini) for supper

When this dear daughter finishes her studies and her piano practicing she can often be found helping in the kitchen, reading a book, knitting, or playing with the toddler who lives upstairs. She single-handedly baked half our Christmas cookies this year and we have come to depend on her for our weekly double batch of chocolate chip or molasses cookies. A few of her favorite things: baking, babies, singing, babies, hanging out with her brothers and sister, babies, Anne of Green Gables, babies, listening to audiobooks, knitting, babies, sewing, and, did I mention, babies?

"May our sons in their youth be like plants full grown, our daughters like corner pillars cut for the structure of a palace...Blessed are the people to whom such blessings fall!" Psalm 144

Dear daughter, you are truly a polished cornerstone of our family and your presence is a blessing to us all. We thank God for you!

Zade

Beautiful World

I've been enjoying the music of the promising, young, Jordanian composer, Zade Dirani thanks to my oldest daughter's thoughtful choice of a Christmas present. Think John Tesh with an eastern flavor. The title track, "Beautiful World" is my favorite so far. You can read more about Zade here and you can hear a little of Zade's music via an Ikbis video at Jordanian blogger, Khobbeizeh's site.

Nibbling, nibbling like a mouse, who is nibbling at my house?

A Novel-ty

It truly is a novelty for me to read a novel. It's not that don't enjoy novels. I do enjoy them and often read them aloud to my children. And, I am a firm believer in poetic knowledge and the power of a story to shape our lives. It's just that when I'm finished with all the reading that I need to do to keep up with my children's educational pursuits I find my little leftover reading time tends to take me to two of my main areas of interst: educational philosophy and theology. So, I figured that it was high time for me to read a novel, "just for fun"...sort of.

I became acquainted withThe Rector of Justin through one of my favorite books on education, Norms and Nobility. David Hicks, the author of Norms and Nobility, begins his treatise on education by telling of a college professor he knows who keeps three books on his night table: "the Bible, the Iliad, and Louis Auchincloss' 1964 novel, The Rector of Justin," the story Dr. Frank Prescott, the ambitious and idealistic founder, schoolmaster, and rector of Justin Martyr, a church school for boys and young men.

As an educational idealist who is overseeing the education of two high school children, one rapidly (so it seems to me) nearing graduation (2008) I took to heart the question that the author raises, quite pointedly, at the end of the book: Why did Prescott fail to raise up the kind of men he set out to; men of virtue, men who would have gone into public service, into government, the army, and the church? I feel a nagging in my own soul as I read:

"'When I urged the boys to go into politics or the ministry, they accepted it as Prescottism, so many lines of a lesson to be learned that had no relation to the real world at home. They learned their lines, yes. Some of them even enjoyed learning them. They had been told by their parents that to be a graduate of Justin would be a material aid in the real world. Ah, yes, reality.' He grunted here and paused. 'Reality was the brokerage house, the corporation law firm, the place on Long Island, the yacht, the right people.'" (p.324)

In other words, in the end, a Justin Martyr education was simply a commodity which enabled the students to graduate to an aristocracy of business and finance. And so Hicks poses the question, "What is the solution to the paradox between educating for the world's fight and for the salvation of the soul." Hicks treatise is his attempt to answer that question. As for me, I find that having his question continually before me focuses and unifies all my educational efforts. And now, joining this question in my mind will be the the image of Dr. Frank Prescott, at the end of his life, humbled by his failure to achieve all that he hoped to in the lives of so many young men.

"It's just like I dreamed it would be!"

The youngers have been asking to make a gingerbread house for a couple of years now. I'm not sure why we haven't done it for so many years but it probably has something to do with my activity level around the holidays. This year we planned ahead, bringing peppermints and other candies in our carry-ons when we returned from the States in September. I helped very little--with a recipe and pattern from All Recipes.com the kids did most of the work and all of the decorating themselves.

The exclamation of my dear daughter, quoted above, made what little work it was for me all worth it.

I think the plan is to break into it on New Year's Eve.

It's not whether you win or lose

but how you play the game. Well, not exactly, according to my Little League baseball coach husband who responds, "if it doesn't matter who wins we wouldn't keep score." He would agree, however, that it does matter how you play the game, so this season he has sought to teach our two sons, taking all three of them to a new level of sportsmanship. (C.J. Mahaney shares how he teaches his young son about sportsmanship.) As a baseball mom I can tell you the most delightful moment in my 14 year old son's game wasn't when he pitched any of the exceptional number of strike-outs; rather, it was the moment when after hitting the batter with an unusual wild pitch, he pulled off his glove and jogged over to first base to shake the runner's hand and make sure he was okay. For more baseball news, make sure to check out my other son's blog. That is where you will find the all important scores of last Friday's games.

The Lost World

The Lost World by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

Number two son, 12 next month, has named his new blog after one of his favorite books, The Lost World. There is no telling what this interested and thus interesting young man will write about, though I predict there will be more baseball related entries throughout the month of May. An ace pitcher, he pitched his team to a win tonight with 17 strike-outs.