Month: October 2009

My First Pie

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My first pie was probably the best pie I’ve ever made — though my mama tells me that a fresh blackberry pie I made something like eight years after that first pie was the best pie I ever made.  I don’t know if either one was really the best — but in my fond memories, or the events that have made the greatest impression on me are those events that were ‘first’s’  — those attempts at achieving perfection with no experience — it was the best pie.

Perfection doesn’t necessarily come from doing something hundreds of times — but is something done well hundreds of times — that’s what makes for “perfection.”  I’m finally beginning to see that the adage “practice makes perfect” isn’t necessarily correct.  For something done wrong — especially done wrong hundreds of times — is still wrong.  But something done right over and over and over becomes something done perfectly well.

I’m learning is that nothing is ever perfect.  But you know what else?  Close is really good enough.  In cooking, that is.

My first pie…

Just south of where we were married in San Francisco, my husband and I rented our first home — a small apartment with a very small galley type kitchen.  I was attempting to create and make a home for the two of us and Wes’s two cats.  Nothing seemed to speak home to me more than pie.  I removed the packaging and opened my beautiful new Better Homes & Gardens Cookbook… and saw the photograph of Apple Pie…  recipe on page…

I carefully wrote down all I’d need to make that pie (along with Fried Chicken – but that’s another First story for another day).  I went to our local market and bought all I needed for that dinner.  I recall spending $176.  Yes.  One-hundred-seventy-six dollars.  Two people.  Yes, that, too, is another First story for another day.

I carefully put away in the little cabinets and in the little fridge all the different groceries.  I opened my cookbook, got out all my new baking stuff… my huge(!) mixing bowl set ;o)  and measuring cups and spoons.  I got out all the necessary ingredients.  I read the recipe again.  Hmmm.

I called my husband at work and asked him:  When the recipe says to pare and core the apples, does that mean take off the skin and stuff and cut it up? He told me he thought that sounded about right. ;o)

It was the best apple pie I’ve ever made.

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My First Cake…

teacuppamela.pngI’ve been thinking back on my first cake — well, I think it was my first — could’ve been my second.  I was making a cake for my mother’s birthday — so, June.  I made my first cake in June.  I cannot recall the year — probably I was nine years old.  I made a cake from a boxed mix and I added blue food colouring along with the eggs and water.  Maybe some oil.  It would have been Wesson Oil, I think.  I baked the cake in an angel food cake pan and set the timer so I’d be sure to not fail by over or under baking the cake.

I didn’t over-bake it.  I didn’t under-bake it. I didn’t have any breezes in the kitchen — nor did I slam any doors or make any sudden moves that would cause the cake to fall.  True to form, in that I cannot do things I’ve not seen done before, I removed the cake from the oven and immediately inverted it on a bottle – on the counter away from any drafts.  I had seen my mother do this with her beautiful angel food cakes.

The baked contents of the pan — the blue contents — instantly dropped onto the counter.  I suddenly was faced with a dilemma:  Uh-Oh!  What do I do now?  I’ve never seen this part before.

Well, I’ve thought of that little incident from time to time over the years.  When I take a cake from the oven, and after it’s cooled a bit, I invert it on a rack.  Because I always grease and flour or spray the cake pans and line them with parchment and because I wait a bit for cooling, I don’t have problems with cake falling all over the place or bits of cake staying in the pan.

I’m not sure why I baked that cake in the angelfood cake pan in the first place.  Maybe I thought it was just the pan to use.  I had seen my mother use that pan.  And I sure don’t know why I coloured it blue — maybe I thought it would resemble some sort of summer pool or something beach-like — I don’t know.  But I do know that the technique I used that day to form it into a dome on a plate is a technique I just might need sometime — and if I do, I’ll know how it’s done.  And I know that day, when it was all said and done, the frosting covered a multitude of sins problems.  I use this technique today.  On cakes and other things.

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The Family Meal Table

teacuppamela.pngOne of our greatest treasures and lasting blessings is our meal table.  It’s a real challenge to maintain mealtimes when the family begins to grow and scatter in different directions each day.  But we endeavor to have at least one meal, if not all of them, together each day.  It’s difficult to persevere with this one sometimes — especially when it’s easier to just “grab ‘n go” when schedules are hectic or when schedules are so different for older family members.    Still, I desire to hold fast to this treasure — this family tradition — this mainstay:  the family meal table.

One of my favourite encouragers is Nancy Campbell.  Her seeming tireless work on behalf of mothers and families is such a blessing to me.  I love to listen to her, to learn from her, to be inspired, encouraged and uplifted as she shares valuable truths and lessons on motherhood.  I so wish I had had her manuals when I began motherhood thirty years ago.  I so needed encouragement as I was sort of “pioneering” my way through early motherhood.

Here’s a glimpse of Nancy Campbell.  Through the years, I’ve included articles and links to articles on our site.  You can also read more at the Above Rubies site.

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Sweetest Day

teacuppamela.pngIt is the third Saturday of October — Sweetest Day. For many people, for many reasons, today is [the] Sweetest Day.

I’m thinking that, after reading an article about an abortionist who was gripped with the reality of what abortion really is, maybe some will make a decision, on this Sweetest Day, to decide/admit/repent once and for all that abortion is murder of a precious little baby — and to, from henceforth, recognize and proclaim the truth of abortion and admit the heinous atrocity of destroying human life and the lucrative abortion industry and its insidious, pernicious lies.

My husband and I spent the day at Seattle Children’s Hospital with our dear friends.  What an incredible place Children’s is: from staff –  information, innovative care, to surgeries, research and practices for thousands of conditions / special needs.  At different locations throughout the hospital we’d see images of children and credits to foundations, donors and supporters of the massive hospital.

Each time we visit that hospital I’m thankful for the care we’ve received there but am more moved by the thousands of images of precious children and families previously helped by the specialized and technologically advanced care they received there.   I’m moved by the intense work to preserve health and life to children — the intense drive to discover and cure ills — to find solutions to debilitating birth defects, disease and disabilities.

In the NICU (Neonatal Intensive Care Unit) waiting room we had sort of a surreal time — as we received updates through the day we had many hours to pray, to praise, and to talk over what the Lord has done — His mercy and goodness. God is only faithful… and great is His faithfulness.

Through the day we were recounting some of the many times we sat with one of the families in that same place as their little son had numerous and very serious medical conditions over many years.  And so…  now we’ll add this event’s waiting room visits to our cache of shared memories with all these friends — these brothers & sisters in the Lord.   I’d like to ask you to pray for our friends and their dear boy… you can follow their blog here.

So, why did I write about abortion in this particular post?  The aberrant reasoning of those who defend the killing of children… the dichotomy of abortion and life… the careless disregard and disposal of precious, intricate, fearfully and wonderfully created by God… human life.

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This is life…

At its very best.

I’ve been giving a lot of thought to the value of a life, the influence of a life, the consequence of a life, the purpose of a life, and the final testimony of a life.  As I have been studying for a Titus2 meeting I’ve been mulling over this month’s topic (from 2 Peter and the list of character qualities) and this month’s topic is charity.  We know from 1 Corinthians 13 that without this — without charity, we are nothing.

So one of the questions that continues to be before me is this:  what is my motivation for ________?  (filling that space with whatever’s before me. I ask myself this question — and want to be more and more mindful of this question when I do this or that thing, think this or that thought, say this or that word — share this or that story.   What is the motivation for doing this activity?  Am I motivated by love or is it some other motivation?  Is my action, word, thought, etc., motivated by love or selfish ambition?  Love or personal gain?  Love or retaliation?  Love or fear?  Love or manipulation?  Love or deceit?

When I stop and ask myself this question or these questions, I am challenged to do what’s right… challenged to be honourable.  When love is the motivation for doing, saying or thinking a particular thing, then I/we desire to do it, say it, think it as the Lord Jesus would have us to do it, say it, think it.  This sort of bearing, believing, hoping all things sort of love is a strong motivator to be — and seek to become more — gracious.

So then, I have come to this conclusion:
This is life at its very best:
Graciously doing, at any given moment, what needs to be done..

From Webster’s 1828 Dictionary: GRA’CIOUS, a. [L. gratiosus.]

1. Favorable; kind; friendly; as,the envoy met with a gracious reception.
2. Favorable; kind; benevolent; merciful; disposed to forgive offenses and impart unmerited blessings.

quotebegin.gifThou are a God ready to pardon, gracious and merciful.
Nehemiah 9
3. Favorable; expressing kindness and favor.

quotebegin.gifAll bore him witness, and wondered at the gracious words which proceeded from his mouth.
Luke 4
4. Proceeding from divine grace; as a person in a gracious state.
5. Acceptable; favored.
6. Renewed or implanted by grace; as gracious affections.
7. Virtuous; good.
8. Excellent; graceful; becoming.


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