Success!

You know how busy families are always trying to make things work better, find balance, keep everything in tension? Mostly, it doesn't happen.

Mostly things are messy, disorganized, and frazzled.. chaos really is the order of the day in most households... except some rare occasions when the planets are rightly aligned...

Tonight was one of those rare occasions- for about 30 glorious minutes, I felt like I was managing it all. Not only adequately, but .. WELL. I baked up a great meal, even fed some of the kids friends, and the food was healthy. There were happy sounds coming from Owen downstairs and more happy sounds coming from the singing and dancing show being performed by Syd, Abbey, and Jamie in the living room. Brendan was running around, list in hand, working on some projects. There was no fighting or conflict anywhere! In the midst of this household full of bliss, I was also feeling like I had had a very productive day at work - two big projects crossed off my list this afternoon. It was a wonderful moment.

Alas, my normal state of feeling simply adequate (often inadequate!), behind, messy, chaotic and disorganized has returned. And you know, I think that I'm glad superwoman/supermom only shows up every once in a while... its hard to have good hair, healthy food, happy kids, and a clean house all the time!

Here is the recipe for the fabulously healthy meal I prepared. I'm sharing it because:

a) its fish, and everyone should eat more fish.

b) my sisters all read this blog and we each have 20 lbs of pickerel from our dad in the freezer.

c) four children devoured this meal. Owen had two helpings, the girls had three each. That says it all!

Greek Baked Fish

2 lbs haddock or other fish fillet (I used pickerel)

2 tbsp lemon juice

seasoning salt

2 tomatoes, diced

3 cloves of garlic, minced

3 tsp dried oregano

2 tsp olive oil

1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese

Preheat oven to 350. Lightly grease 9 X13 pan. Place fillets in pan, sprinkle with lemon juice and seasoning salt. Sprinkle with tomatoes, garlic, and oregano. Drizzle olive oil over the tomato topping. Top with crumbled feta cheese. Bake for 35 minutes, or until fish flakes with a fork.

Enjoy ...

Thanskgiving

Expressions of thankfulness abound at this time of year; its only fitting that we express ours....

Here are a handul of the things that I'm thankful for:

A faith that led me to a surprisingly real relationship with God. It's the thing I am least deserving of and most grateful for.

A plan for my life that isn't entirely dependent on me.

A close family that brings "being real" to a whole new level.

I did some quick searches for Thanksgiving thoughts this morning, here are a few results:

***Thanksgiving, after all, is a word of action. ~W.J. Cameron***

***We can only be said to be alive in those moments when our hearts are conscious of our treasures. ~Thornton Wilder***

Also found some conflicting details about the origins of American thanksgiving;

1. Thanksgiving Day, a function which originated in New England two or three centuries ago when those people recognized that they really had something to be thankful for - annually, not oftener - if they had succeeded in exterminating their neighbors, the Indians, during the previous twelve months instead of getting exterminated by their neighbors, the Indians. Thanksgiving Day became a habit, for the reason that in the course of time, as the years drifted on, it was perceived that the exterminating had ceased to be mutual and was all on the white man's side, consequently on the Lord's side; hence it was proper to thank the Lord for it and extend the usual annual compliments. ~Mark Twain

2. At the beginning of the following fall, they had lost 46 of the original 102 who sailed on the Mayflower. But the harvest of 1621 was a bountiful one. And the remaining colonists decided to celebrate with a feast -- including 91 Indians who had helped the Pilgrims survive their first year. It is believed that the Pilgrims would not have made it through the year without the help of the natives.

And a final thought:

Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity. It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today and creates a vision for tomorrow. ~Melody Beattie

Happy Thanksgiving!

So, what does living justly look like?

Thinking about things like fair trade and living 'justly' (can I say that?) is occupying much space in my head these days .. I bought the poster below at the MCC store in Regina in spring. I hung it on the door of my pantry, so I had to see it many times each day. The poster has some thought-provoking ideas, like: Know where your bank banks, Don't confuse your comfort with your safety; Talk to strangers; Notice the workings of power & privelege in your culture; Question consumption; Know how your lettuce and coffee are grown: wake up and smell the exploitation, look for fair trade and union labels; Acquire few needs; Re-define progress; Read the UN's Universal Declaration of Human Rights; Refuse to wear corporate logos; defy corporate domination; Don't confuse money with wealth, or time with money; Judge governance by how well it meets all people's needs; Be skeptical about what you read; Choose curiosity over certainty; Know that no one is silent though many are not heard. Some thoughts were revolutionary for me, some were common sense ... I think I am becoming more and more committed to finding ways to redefine the way our family lives, the ways we consume. In An Inconvenient Truth, Al Gore stressed over and over that change starts small ... we know this yet the magnitude of what needs to be addressed in our world dulls our senses and our desire to make a difference. We all need to start applying new principles in our day to day existence ... Can we stop doubting that our small contribution can indeed make a difference?

Thinking...

As one wades through a massive life change, reflection is inevitable .. I've been reflecting lately on how we (generic 'we') live ... it's challenging me to really take inventory of everyday choices, casual or complacent attitudes, small things that add up to big impact...I've added a new component to this Blog: "Links to make you think" ... I'm going to keep updating it as I learn more, I hope you'll join me - follow the links, and check back as I hope to add more interesting sites that help us all make wiser choices ... let me know of any sites you know of that help us live wisely....