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Friday’s Fresh Five! (2/12/10)

Posted in Holidays, inspiration, Recipes, tagged , , , , , on February 12, 2010| Leave a Comment »

With Chinese New Year’s, Valentine’s Day, and President’s Day creating a triple-treat long weekend for us, what’s not to celebrate? Having posted about the first two holidays, I feel it would be remiss of me not to write a post about President’s Day. Although President’s Day is specifically a celebration of George Washington’s birthday, I’d like to pay homage to some of our other American Presidents as well.

#1 – Why I Would Have Voted for George Washington
Any man who says this about his mother gets my vote: “My mother was the most beautiful woman I ever saw. All I am I owe to my mother. I attribute all my success in life to the moral, intellectual and physical education I received from her.”

#2 – Presidential-related Biographical Novels
I’ve always enjoyed reading historical fiction and Irving Stone’s novels are among some of my favorites:

LOVE IS ETERNAL: A Novel of Mary Todd and Abraham Lincoln

THOSE WHO LOVE: A Biographical Novel of Abigail and John Adams

THE PRESIDENT’S LADY: A Novel about Rachel and Andrew Jackson

#3 – Presidential Trivia Quiz
Courtesy of Apples4theteacher.com:

1. Who was the only bachelor president?
a. James Buchanan
b. James Monroe
c. Andrew Johnson
d. James Polk

2. Who was the heaviest president?
a. Grover Cleveland
b. Ulysses S. Grant
c. James Madison
d. William Taft

3. Who was the oldest elected president?
a. George Washington
b. Thomas Jefferson
c. Ronald Reagan
d. Woodrow Wilson

4. Which president was NOT born or did NOT die on the 4th of July?
a. John Adams
b. Calvin Coolidge
c. Thomas Jefferson
d. Benjamin Harrison

5. Which president was related by either blood or marriage to eleven other presidents?
a. John Quincy Adams
b. Franklin D. Roosevelt
c. Benjamin Harrison
d. John Kennedy

6. Which president was the youngest person to become president?
a. John F. Kennedy
b. Franklin Pierce
c. Theodore Roosevelt
d. William Clinton

7. Which president did not die in office?
a. Millard Fillmore
b. Franklin D. Roosevelt
c. Warren Harding
d. Zachary Taylor

8. Which president’s face is not part of Mt. Rushmore?
a. Thomas Jefferson
b. Franklin D. Roosevelt
c. George Washington
d. Theodore Roosevelt

Answers:
1. James Buchanan was the only bachelor president. He was the 15th president.

2. The heaviest president was William Taft, who weighed 300-340 pounds. He was the 27th president.

3. Ronald Reagan was the oldest elected president at age 69. He was the 40th president.

4. John Adams and Thomas Jefferson died on the same day – July 4, 1826. Calvin Coolidge was BORN on July 4, 1872. Benjamin Harrison died on March 13, 1901. He was the 23rd president.

5. John Quincy Adams was the son of the 2nd president, John Adams. Benjamin Harrison was the grandson of the 9th president, William Harrison. Franklin D. Roosevelt was related by either blood or marriage to eleven other presidents: John Adams, John Quincy Adams, Ulysses S. Grant, William Henry Harrison, Benjamin Harrison, James Madison, Theodore Roosevelt, William Taft, Zachary Taylor, Martin Van Buren, and George Washington. He was the 32nd president.

6. The youngest person to become president was Theodore Roosevelt, who, as vice-president, took over the office when William McKinley was assassinated. Roosevelt was 42 years of age. He was the 26th president. Kennedy was the youngest ELECTED president, but not the youngest to become president.

7. Millard Fillmore served from 1850-1854. He died in 1874. He was the 13th president.

8. Mt. Rushmore honors 4 past presidents: George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt, and Abraham Lincoln. Franklin D. Roosevelt was the 32nd president.

#4 – A Presidential Soup Recipe
Here’s a recipe for Laura Bush’s Bake Potato Soup, courtesy of Presidential Recipes:
6 cups left over mashed potatoes
2 tbsp. butter or margarine
1 medium onion, diced
1/2 lb. of bacon, diced, cooked and drained well
1 large red pepper, diced
2 cups sharp cheddar cheese, grated
1/2 cup chives, minced
4 tbsp. sour cream approximately
2-3 cups of whipping cream, half and half or milk
Kosher salt & fresh ground pepper to taste

In a large soup pot, saute onions and red pepper over medium heat in 2 tablespoons butter until onions are clear. Add bacon, potatoes and whipping cream to desired consistency.

Skim milk or chicken stock may be used to reduce calories. Salt and pepper to taste.

Serve with a garnish of a dollop of sour cream, grated cheese and chives.

#5 – Presidential Quotes
“Do what you can, with what you have, where you are.”
Theodore Roosevelt

“He has a right to criticize, who has a heart to help.”
Abraham Lincoln

“Do you want to know who you are? Don’t ask. Act! Action will delineate and define you.” Thomas Jefferson

“Men are not prisoners of fate, but only prisoners of their own minds.”
Franklin D. Roosevelt

“As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them.”
John F. Kennedy

Enjoy your long weekend!

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Equal Time For Fortune Cookies

Posted in Art and Crafts, Creativity, Holidays, Recipes, tagged , , , , , , , on February 10, 2010| Leave a Comment »

My last post was all about Valentine’s cookies, but this coming Sunday, February the 14th, is not only Valentine’s Day, it’s also the first day of the Chinese new year 4707. According to the L.A. Times, “This is a rare convergence — it’s only the third time since 1900 – and it won’t happen again until after 2030. Added to that, it’s the year of the Tiger, which traditionally symbolizes great passion.”

So why not celebrate both passion-filled holidays at the same time? Here are a few ideas for ways to incorporate these two distinct holidays into your upcoming holiday meal planning and table decorating:

1. Using Paula Deen’s recipe make your own fortune cookies and fill them with romantic fortunes. Even better, whether homemade or store bought, dip the ends of fortune cookies into melted chocolate, then dip into toppings of your choice such as Valentine-colored sprinkles, chopped nuts, coconut shavings, or finely chopped white chocolate. Let cool. Serve for dessert.

2. Decorate Chinese take out boxes with stickers or use rubber stamps and emboss the boxes. Place one at each place setting and serve fresh salad or delicious pasta inside of them. Stick in a pair of chopsticks and you’re good to go!

3. Make Chinese fortune cookies out of felt a la Martha Stewart and tuck Hershey Kisses and personalized fortunes into them. Scatter these on the dining table, place them in a bowl, or use them as party favors.

4. Use rice in your candlescapes by arranging candle pillars on a platter and pour and smooth white rice around them.

5. Set your table with napkins folded to resemble fortune cookies.

Materials Needed:
Solid-colored light brown or tan-colored cloth napkins
Paper strips and pens or computer printed fortunes

How to Fold Fortune Cookie Napkins:
A. Place napkin completely flat, right side down on an even surface.

B. Bring lower edge up about one third of the napkin height.

C. Fold down the top of the already folded napkin so that the top third of the napkin covers the bottom third. You should have a rectangle at this point.

D. Hold your thumb at the center top of the rectangle and fold the right half under itself and pull down so it extends about 3 inches below the edge of the rectangle.

E. Repeat a mirror image fold with the left half.

F. Fold up each of the two corners of the left tail so that they meet at the base of the large triangle and form a new triangle with the point at the bottom. Repeat with the right tail.

G. Fold the left tail up so that it touches the top point of the large triangle and creates a rectangle.

H. Fold the rectangle in half to form your fortune cookie. Turn it over so that the slit side is up. Place “giant” paper fortunes in them.

Gung Hay Fat Choy!

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Friday’s Fresh Five! (2/5/10)

Posted in Helping Others, In The Kitchen, inspiration, Recipes, Recycling, tagged , , , , , , , , on February 5, 2010| 2 Comments »

Despite the soggy weather, my daffodils are beginning to bloom. These beacons of cheer brighten the dreary landscape. Read about how your gift of daffodils can help brighten other people’s lives.

#1 – Daffodil Days
Proceeds from the American Cancer Society’s Daffodil Days program not only raise funds, but give hope to people facing cancer. According to the American Cancer Society, Daffodil Days “is about more than just giving beautiful flowers: it is everyone’s opportunity to create a world with less cancer and more birthdays where cancer never steals another year from anyone’s life.” Please give a gift of hope by donating to this worthwhile event.

#2 – My Most Requested Recipe Update
This information just in from one of my co-workers! A few months before I posted My Most Requested Recipe in September, a co-worker asked me for it so she could prepare it for her husband. He’s been eating steel cut oatmeal for breakfast every morning since then. Says my co-worker of her husband, “He was waving his lab report around like it was a medal.” The eighteen point drop in his cholesterol was quite significant. His current cholesterol levels have gone back down to his 2006 levels!

#3 – A Produce Tip from Bob
When buying bananas, look for medium-sized ones without any bruises. Avoid those that have a greenish-purple tinge as those will never ripen to a golden yellow. The greenish-purple tinge indicates that they have been refrigerated at some point in time. They are okay to eat, but will not taste as good.

#4 – Recycling: By the Numbers
I read an article on the Planet Green site called Recycling: By the Numbers and was impressed with the information. Here are the numbers as stated in the article:

* 544,000: Trees saved if every household in the United States replaced just one roll of virgin fiber paper towels (70 sheets) with 100 percent recycled ones.

* 20 million: Tons of electronic waste thrown away each year. One ton of scrap from discarded computers contains more gold than can be produced from 17 tons of gold ore.

* 9 cubic yards: Amount of landfill space saved by recycling one ton of cardboard.

* $160 billion: Value of the global recycling industry that employs over 1.5 million people.

* 79 million tons: Amount of waste material diverted away from disposal in 2005 through recycling and composting.

* 5 percent: Fraction of the energy it takes to recycle aluminum versus mining and refining new aluminum.

* 315 kg: Amount of carbon dioxide not released into the atmosphere each time a metric ton of glass is used to create new glass products.

* 98 percent: Percentage of glass bottles in Denmark that are refillable. 98 percent of those are returned by consumers for reuse.

* 51.5 percent: Percentage of the paper consumed in the U.S. that was recovered for recycling in 2005.

#5 – A Quote on Hope
Hope is like a road in the country; there was never a road, but when many people walk on it, the road comes into existence.
Lin Yutang

Bring cheer to someone’s life this weekend!

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Party Wings

Posted in In The Kitchen, Recipes, tagged , , , , , on February 1, 2010| 2 Comments »

I’m not a Super Bowl fan, but I do love a reason to eat party food! Here’s a recipe that I tested last week that was super simple and tasty!

My adaptation of Baked Parmesan Garlic Chicken Wings:
(Original recipe from PizzAmore, Mount Dora, Florida)

Serves 4
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried or fresh rosemary
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon kosher or sea salt (1/2 tsp table salt)
2 1/2 pounds chicken wings, cut at joints, wing tips discarded
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil (or melted butter)
2 tablespoons minced fresh basil
2 garlic cloves, finely minced
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 teaspoon seasoning salt (like Lawry’s)
1 cup blue cheese dressing
1-2 teaspoons Dijon mustard (or to taste)

1. Preheat oven to 425F. In a large bowl, mix together the oregano, rosemary, cumin and salt. Toss the chicken wings in this mixture and lay them on a baking sheet.

2. Bake the chicken wings for 20-25 minutes. While the chicken is baking, mix together the oil (or butter), fresh basil, garlic, Parmesan cheese, and seasoning salt.

3. In a separate bowl, mix together the blue cheese dressing with the mustard (this is your dipping sauce)

3. When the chicken is cooked through, toss the wings with the garlic/cheese/butter sauce. Serve with the blue cheese/mustard dressing.

Note:The original recipe specified dried rosemary, but I used fresh rosemary because I do not like eating little bits of “sticks” that dried rosemary becomes. I’m a low sodium type person, so I felt the wings were a bit too salty for me, but other people thought they were fine.

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Friday’s Fresh Five! ( 1/29/10)

Posted in Community, Helping Others, In The Kitchen, inspiration, Recycling, Travel, tagged , , , , , , , , , , on January 29, 2010| 1 Comment »


The sun has been struggling to break through the clouds for days now. Is this the day that it will actually happen? Metaphorically speaking, is today the day that each of us breaks through our own set of clouds? Will each of us choose to make selfless or selfish decisions today?

#1 – Blog4Change
In my quest for providing my readers with helpful information, I came across Blog4Change.org. Here’s its theory:
It has been said that people start their lives with equal parts of both selfishness and selflessness. Everyday, with every decision we make, there is an internal struggle between these two polar opposite sides of ourselves. The one that grows is the one that we choose to feed.

Do we let the car in with his blinker on beside us, or do we move up quickly because we do not want to lose the space? Do we lend an ear to the unhappy man behind the counter, or do we overlook his sadness because we are in a rush and must move on with our day?

Over the last thirty or so years we believe many people have been taken over by their selfish side. Look around, our world is full with people who drive nice cars but seek something faster, who live in nice homes but want something bigger, who have the latest TV, computer, phone, boat, or other toy, but are still not satisfied.

We believe it is vitally important to now, today, begin to retrain our bodies and rewire our brains to help make our selfless side stronger. We must feed our selfless desires, nurture them, help them to grow, and eventually, hopefully, our selfless side will once again dominate our selfish selves.

If a new visitor signs up to be a blogger at Blog4Change.org, writes three posts per week, and leaves three comments on other articles per week, it is our hypothesis that these visitors will be transformed from feeling generally empty, to feeling definitively fulfilled, from feeling generally down, to assuredly happy.

The idea is this: if the more you feed something the stronger it gets, which side of yourself do you want to be feeding?

With every blog post we will learn together how to live simple, expect little, and give much. The end result might just be something significant.

#2 – Recycling Towels
If you have bath or beach towels that you are no longer using, call your local veterinarian or SPCA to see if they can use them. Why donate to the SPCA versus the ASPCA? The ASPCA is a national organization headquartered in New York City. Its commercials feature photos of sad looking animals with Sarah McLachlan singing in the background. According to a customer of mine who is on the board of a local SPCA, if you donate to the ASPCA you may be helping animals, but your local SPCA will not receive any funding to continue its services.

#3 – A Kitchen Tip
Try using your kitchen scissors to snip your fresh herbs into little bits. It’s easier and faster this way. Hold herbs by their stems and start snipping at the other end. The herbs will look fresher and won’t have the bruising and dark coloration that chopped herbs can have.

#4 – Tips for Driving in the Fog
Courtesy of my local newspaper, here are tips for driving in the fog that I thought everyone should be reminded of:

A. Watch your speed. Fog creates the illusion that you’re going slower than you really are. Turn off the stereo and roll a window down a little to listen to trouble. If you hear voices or slamming doors, that’s reason for caution.

B. Use low-beam headlights, not high beams. If you can’t see the road ahead, concentrate on lane lines. If you have fog lights, use those, too – they help light up lane markers.

C. Avoid changing lanes.

D. Slow down. But if possible don’t stop, because you could be rear-ended.

E. If you must stop, the best option is to leave the highway using a designated exit. If you must pull onto the shoulder, get as far off the roadway as possible.

#5 – A Quote
“What you leave behind is not what is engraved on stone monuments, but what is woven into the lives of others.”
Pericles

Have a good weekend! Has the sun come out, yet?

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No Worries?

Posted in About me, Kids, Parenting, tagged , , , , on January 26, 2010| 2 Comments »

“Are you sure you don’t want to take more long-sleeved sweaters and fewer short-sleeved shirts?” I ask my daughter as she packs up her belongings for a study abroad in Greece. “I’ll be fine, Mom,” my daughter says without hesitation. I worry because I read that it can occasionally snow in Greece during the winter and my darling daughter is packing as if she were going to Hawaii.

If there were a job description for being a mom, I’m sure worrying would be right up there with nourishing. Being a mom is by far the most difficult job I’ve ever had and the white hairs on my head are proof. Using Sharpie pens to disguise those hairs has become too time consuming and, anyways, my triceps muscles are too weak to hold my arms above my head for extended periods of time. My parents have always said that no matter how old my siblings and I become, they still worry about us. Don’t get me wrong, none of us are hellions, but how well children are prepared to weather life’s up and downs are all causes of concern to parents.

Unfortunately children do not come with instruction manuals, so when mine were babies I would fret over whether they were getting enough to eat, whether sending them to daycare was the right choice, and whether they were developing normally. The latter was needless worrying since, thankfully, none of my children are normal. They are all extraordinary!

As they grew up and went to elementary school, I worried about constant colds, ear infections, and major childhood diseases. But also on my “worry meter” was their fine and gross motor skill development. Could they skip? That was always the test to see if they could progress on to first grade. When would they learn to read? Would they learn to say their “R’s” the normal way so that car did not sound like “caw?” These worries dissolved away as each concern was resolved.

When they approached junior high school, I stressed over eating habits, study habits, hygiene routines, and their burgeoning sport and social schedules. High school offered little relief for me as sports and social activities, driving lessons, high academic standards, and college applications all warred against each other. But alas, all that high school worrying was for naught; they all got into good colleges. Then the college years came and brought worries about drinking, driving, drugs, and roommates! After almost ten years I can see light at the end of the college-years tunnel.

You get the picture. My worrying can take a siesta now. All seems calm . . . but wait . . . will number one graduate and get a good job? Will number two continue to manage his health issues adequately? And will number three be alright in Greece? I don’t have a crystal ball that can predict the future, but I do know that I’ve tried to be the best mom I could possibly be and I must now rely on my children to remember all that I’ve instilled in them and to make the right choices. Hmm, I just noticed that it is 37 degrees in Athens right now. So why am I worried?

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Friday’s Fresh Five! (1/22/10)

Posted in Gardening, In The Kitchen, inspiration, Recycling, Travel, tagged , , , , , , , , , on January 22, 2010| Leave a Comment »

It’s bleak and wet outside, but I’m thinking of the beautiful sunny days ahead. My garden will be lovely in the spring, but only if I put in the work now!

#1 – A Garden Tip
In his book A Year In The Life Of A Rose, Rayford Clayton Reddell suggests stripping (cutting not ripping off) the foliage of your rose bushes two weeks before pruning. He states, “When leaves are removed from rosebushes, the plant is given a signal to rejuvenate the foliar process immediately.” The best time to prune your roses? Reddell says, “Prune as soon as possible once dormancy is safely broken, that is, when you’re sure there won’t be another hard freeze.”

#2 – Recycle With Freecycle
Got a new Blu-Ray DVD player for Christmas, but don’t know what to do with the old one? Check to see if there’s a Freecycle group in your area. Freecycle’s internet site claims: “The Freecycle Network™ is made up of 4,878 groups with 6,913,000 members across the globe. It’s a grassroots and entirely nonprofit movement of people who are giving (& getting) stuff for free in their own towns. It’s all about reuse and keeping good stuff out of landfills. Each local group is moderated by a local volunteer (them’s good people). Membership is free.” Make sure to be smart and protect your safety and privacy when posting to any list or participating in any exchange.

#3 – A Kitchen Tip
When using honey in recipes try spraying your measuring spoon or measuring cup with non-stick vegetable spray first. The honey will pour out more easily.

#4 – Say Hello
Here’s how to say hello or good day in these different languages:
Greek – yassou
French – bonjour
Spanish – hola
Italian – buongiorno
Portuguese – olá
Chinese – nǐ hǎo

#5 – A Quote
I would disagree with those who say we cannot change the past. We can heal it, transform it, utilize it, build on it – any number of creative things.
Julia Cameron, author of The Artist’s Way

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Friday’s Fresh Five! (1/15/10)

Posted in Community, Handcrafted Cards, Health, Helping Others, In The Kitchen, inspiration, Style and fashion, tagged , , , , on January 15, 2010| 1 Comment »

Try something new. Change your routine. Challenge yourself to find different ways to help others.

#1 – Helping Others
Looking for a way to make a difference? Here’s a link to VolunteerMatch. The description on the site reads, “VolunteerMatch strengthens communities by making it easier for good people and good causes to connect. The organization offers a variety of online services to support a community of nonprofit, volunteer and business leaders committed to civic engagement. Our popular service welcomes millions of visitors a year and has become the preferred internet recruiting tool for more than 74,000 nonprofit organizations.” The site was easy to use. I typed in my city and a list of organizations in my area looking for volunteers came up.

#2 – A Beauty Tip
Instead of buying expensive facial scrubs, try reaching into your pantry instead. Here are a couple of ideas: Baking soda mixed in with your favorite facial cleanser acts as a physical exfoliant by removing dead skin cells. Whirl oatmeal flakes in your blender with a little baking soda and water and you got a great soothing scrub. Or mix together 1 cup of granulated sugar with a 1/2 cup of oil (preferably almond oil) for a gentle moisturizing exfoliant. Try one tonight!

#3 – A Nutrition Tip
Which do you enjoy more – a wedge of iceberg lettuce with blue cheese on it or a Caesar salad? Did you know that romaine lettuce is far more nutritious than iceberg? According to e-Cookbooks, romaine “has three times as much Vitamin C and six times as much Vitamin A.”

#4 – Style Tips
Fashion designer Bradley Bayou’s top 5 reasons to pay more attention to accessories:
1. They change an outfit from formal to casual (and vice versa) in just a few seconds.
2. They’re more affordable than clothes.
3. They play up your sexiest assets.
4. They’re a great diversion from your flaws.
5. They can add a trendy touch to your neutral basics.

#5 – A Quote to Think About
If you judge people, you have no time to love them.
Mother Teresa

Enjoy your weekend!

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What Would You Say?

Posted in Art and Crafts, Creativity, Gift Ideas, inspiration, Jewelry, Parenting, Style and fashion, tagged , , , , , on January 5, 2010| 4 Comments »

If you could only pass on three words of advice to your child, what would you say? Last fall a silver charm at a craft fair caught my eye. It very simply read, “Spread Joy.” With a blog tag line of “sharing and encouraging joy in life,” this charm was meant to be mine. I put it on a chain and started wearing it as an affirmation of what I was trying to accomplish in life.

According to Wikipedia, “Affirmations in New Age and New Thought terminology refer primarily to the practice of positive thinking – fostering a belief that ‘a positive mental attitude supported by affirmations will achieve success in anything.'” More simply put, an affirmation is a positive thought that you keep in your mind and the more you think about it and believe in it, the more likely it will happen.

I thought about buying my daughter a charm, too, but what words or saying would inspire her? One thought lead to another until the idea grew into, “What about making one-of-a-kind affirmation necklaces for her as well as six of my nieces for Christmas?”

To do so I needed a little help. I asked each of my sisters-in-law to come up with words of advice that she would like to pass on to her daughter(s). The moms had no idea why I needed these words. I felt that if I told them it was for a piece of jewelry, it would cloud their word selection. The exercise proved to be challenging, because it forced the moms to reflect on the unique qualities of each daughter and to choose from their life’s book of wisdom one concept to distill into a mere three words. Of course, it didn’t help that I presented them with this assignment during the hectic holiday season! In different forms, they all managed to give me food for thought.

My husband, my daughter, and I spent an evening interpreting and shortening the mothers’ information, until we were satisfied we had captured the essence of what each was trying to convey to her daughter(s). That was the difficult part of the necklace-making project.

The easy part came next. My husband and I cut pieces out of a sheet of sterling silver, filed the edges smooth, hand stamped each letter of every word, oxidized, punched holes, and polished them. The stamped affirmation charms along with other specially selected charms were attached to chains and a loving letter of explanation was written to accompany each necklace.

What three words did I choose for my daughter? After a little thought, the words came easily to me. In Amy Tan’s book The Joy Luck Club there is a recurring theme: Know Your Worth. These are words I want my daughter to carry in her heart – she must never undervalue herself in any relationship or in any circumstance in life.

When all seven of these young ladies wear their affirmation necklaces, I hope they’ll believe in the positive power of the words written on their charms and that they appreciate the wisdom of their mothers.

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She

Posted in About me, Aging, inspiration, tagged , , , , , , on December 29, 2009| 6 Comments »

She, with her copper-colored hair who has survived two breast surgeries and now faces a diagnosis of stomach cancer, hugs me and thanks me for the emotional uplift. I did not know her before she walked into the store looking for clothes to wear for the summer. She is buying clothes for a season she may not see, but is positively projecting her future. I tell her the story of my grandmother who had lung cancer, who denied she had anything but rheumatism, and who managed to live years beyond her original grim diagnosis. She is misty-eyed, yet smiling while listening to my story. We hug again and she leaves the store. I silently thank her for her courageous presence on this earth.

She sits in her wheel chair and waves goodbye from the window. I watch her as she blows kisses to my daughter and me as we drive away from the senior care center. Our hearts are sad that we can’t take her with us, but she does not belong to us and is destined to live in that place for the rest of her life. She has just told us that she “loves us so much.” Her words warm my heart and I silently thank her for allowing us into her life.

She wanders through the store refusing help from others. She approaches me and asks me about the unique sizing. In a matter-of-fact manner I relay the information to her. She looks me in the eye and softly says, “My husband is in the early stages of Alzheimer’s.” She tells me of the difficulties of being his caretaker and how she cannot leave him. I tell her she must take time to care for herself. We discuss this matter a bit more. How can I speak of things I do not know? The words seem to flow from my mouth. Then with a look of resignation, she weaves her way back through the racks of clothes and is gone. I silently thank her for her lesson on devotion.

She steps off the plane and my family says, “Is that her?” She is the wife and mother who has not been seen for over two decades. She is the grandmother who only knows of her grandchildren by the photos she’s kept safe in a basket back at home. She comes towards me with opened arms and utters my Chinese name “Lai Jyuh.” Her arms bear the strength of a woman who once hid in the mountains from the communists, yet as they wrap around me, I feel the soft tenderness of unconditional love. I silently thank her for sharing her love with me.

These are mere samplings of encounters with women, some complete strangers and some dear to me, that have enlightened my soul. Each encounter is like a shimmery thread that I have taken and gently woven into a beautiful fabric that wraps around my heart. I give humble thanks to each and every “She” who has passed my way.

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