Memories

This past weekend I was at a good friend's house for Friday and Saturday. We listened to music, watched movies, played bananagrams, and made flower pencils and pens. One of the movies we watched was The Princess and the Frog. In this movie she makes beignets. So, we decided to try and make them. After we finished mixing everything together we still needed more flour. But we had a problem. We were out of flour. So, hoping that my friend's parents were on their way home, we called them to see if they could get us some. Thankfully they were able to. Now we had a doughy mixture. We poured it out onto wax paper to shape it. Another problem occurred, it was too runny and still needed more flour. So we tried to put it back into the bowl. Now imagine trying to put runny dough back into a bowl with your hands. It was sticking to everything but finally we got most of it back in. After mixing in the needed flour, we had to deep fry it.... Um, do what we said!?!?!? I got out a skillet and the oil and heated up the stove. Once the oil in the skillet was heated, I dropped a ball of dough in. The first few got a little bit burnt. However, once I got the hang of it they turned out golden brown and crispy. My friend slathered on the honey and powdered sugar. We ended our day with a tasty and memorable plate of goodness.

Obessions

We all have certain things that for some strange reason draw us towards them. I have three. Roses, peacocks, and the Eiffel tower. Every time I see something with any of these three things on it, I love it. It wouldn't matter if it was toilet paper. Actually, toilet paper with designs on it would be awesome. I have five pictures of roses hanging in my room. Two peacock pictures and three vases with peacock feathers in them. I have a lot of jewelry with peacock designs. Three miniature Eiffel towers and two other trinkets with Eiffel towers on them line my bookshelves. I am not sure why I love these things so much. I have always loved roses and the Eiffel tower and peacocks are my favorite animal. However, I have no personal connection with any of them. Sometimes we are just a little obsessed with things.  I think it is all right to be a little crazy about this kind of stuff, but we have to remember what is most important. We can't put material things ahead of God. If we do put earthly ahead of God, we are making our own idols. Earlier this week I was helping with a kindergarten class. I was helping one of the girls with her prayer hand. Each finger had a group written in it. The thumb had family because it is the closest to you when you are praying. The pointer finger was to remind them of their teachers. The index finger had president and leaders written in it because it is the tallest finger. Sick and hurting people went on the ring finger because it is the weakest finger. The last finger, or the pinkie, was for their needs because it is the smallest finger. While I was filling in this little girls paper with her, I thought about how as we get older we lose sight of what is most important. In highschool you usually think about yourself the most. We need to take ourselves off of our thumbs and put ourselves back on our pinkie fingers.

The Spoon Man

            I was at the Apple Harvest Festival this past weekend. I love all the little shops and vendors, but one in particular was my favorite. The spoon man is so vintage and unique. He uses spoons, forks, knives, and other serving utensils to make artsy jewelry and trinkets. One of his fork bracelets caught my eye. It was slightly tarnished more than the rest. He made the points of the fork curl whimsically. The handle of the fork has a beautiful design. Size does not matter with these bracelets because it slides onto your wrist and you can squeeze them or pull them apart to fit. It smells like tarnished metal and leaves the scent on your wrist. I think I love these bracelets so much because each one is different. Every one that the spoon man makes is unique. This fork bracelet is kind of like us. We are all different. We are all beautiful. We all have different qualities that separate us from one another and make us special.

Listening Through the Door

"Where do you want it?"

"Set it in the... "

"On the dining room table or where ever."

"Oh hush
meow meow meow...
"What made you go with black?"

"They didn't have white."

"I figure instead of leaving this all here we can carry it all up because i don't want this floor sctratched,"

"I can take that."

"You can take that piece."

"Up by the closet?"

"Somewhere around there.
Is this like a door?"

"Yea."

"Or is it like a tray or something?"

"Are you done with homework?"

"Yes."

"But we have to go over chemistry yet?"

"Yea, I have alot of stuff to do."

"All right well this won't take long.
Why don't you take this?"

"Ok."

"Lay this on top. It's lighter."

"Where should I put this? I'm gonna set it up over here."

"Well when are we gonna put this together? I assume tomorrow or saturday?
Now this to you have to lay flat or it will curl."

"What if I stand it up like this?"

"I guess that will be good.
You're gonna lay them against each other, correct?"

"Yea."

"Just take it all then."

"Rebekah, I'm laying stuff for my desk up here don't bump it."

"How was tonight? Was there a lot of people there?"

"I only played the first game. The football guys that came in from their practice stayed but..."

"All right you can take this."

"Can you help me move this pot?"

"To where?"

"To right here."

"Last one."

"Anything you want me to take to the trash?"

"I'll throw this up to you.
Put this in the trash."

"In what bag?"

"The bag with the loose parts."

Don't Throw That Out!

I keep everything. I really do try to throw things that I really don't need out. I keep everything to long letters, little notes,and cards to receipts and instruction manuals. I have a ton of little notepads and post-it notes. I find them everywhere. I find them shoved into books, in a random drawer that is supposed to hold clothes, in bags, and in wallets. When I try to clean out the drawers and bags I always end up putting what I find into my books or in my desk. The only cards I can bring myself to throw out are simple little thank you notes. I have letters from my best friend dating back to elementary school. I also have knick-knacks lining my bookshelves. I have 81 little objects on my two bookshelves. It is no wonder I have books that don't fit on my shelves. These things have meaning to me. I hope I never have to get rid of any of these crazy decorations. I don't ever want to throw any of it out!

Just a Room

Soft music plays in the back of my head. I hear crickets chirping outside my window. A mile away a train rattles on its track. Fresh flowers give off a sweet fragrance that fills the room. Books fill the walls with knowledge. As I rest on my bed the headboard creaks. Street lights gleam up through my window. Doors open and shut down the hall. Shoes are strewn across the cold wooden floor. I scribble numbers on the white, lined paper. My desk is brimming full of papers and books. A bright light reflects off the smudged mirror. My delicate, paper lantern spins in circles when the heat suddenly blasts from the vent. My skin is warmed instantly. I have found a home in these things. It could never be "just a room" to me.