I love Saturdays! Unless there's something that I absolutely have to do, Saturday is my day of rest. I even try to cook the day before so I don't have to worry about cleaning my kitchen! This morning, though, I went to the market to buy strawberries, and then came home to make fresh strawberry jam while listening to "20 the Countdown Magazine" on Pulse FM. I listen to it through the Internet and it's kind of become a Saturday morning tradition. It was SO fun! I've never made strawberry jam before. I was a little sad that I was doing it for the first time by myself, because I would have rather done it with my mom, sisters, aunts, cousins, and grandmas. But it was still fun. For lunch I ate a Peanut Butter and Jelly sandwich with JIF PEANUT BUTTER that the Breuers brought down (you guys are so wonderful! I've LOVED that stuff!) and my fresh strawberry jam. Then for dinner, I ate a Peanut Butter and Jelly sandwich with JIF PEANUT BUTTER and my fresh strawberry jam :) I've been in heaven.
Cooking is one of the really fun parts of being a missionary, for me, but it can also take up a LOT of time, if I let it. Depending on where you live, you can't always buy all of the convenience foods you're used to in the US. And you can't go out to eat as much, either. For me, it's a fun challenge to see if I can use my creativity to make food that reminds me of home. Some people find it frustrating, though, because food preparation does take up a lot of time. So does cleaning. And laundry. Most people wash their clothes, by hand, instead of using a washing machine. And nobody uses clothes dryers. They all hang their clothes out on a line, like the Amish. So just keeping up with the cooking, cleaning, and laundry take a lot of time. That's why most people pay maids to help them. In the US only the rich people have maids. But here, it's very common. The maids don't get paid very much, but since there aren't any other good jobs around, they're thankful just to have a job. But like I said, missionaries are great cooks because they have to learn how to make everything from scratch. Missionary kids are lucky, that way! Another reason that missionaries can spend a lot of time in the kitchen is because we make such good desserts that everybody always asks us to make cakes for their birthdays! Like I said, I love it, but I do have to be careful that it doesn't take up too much time, because I don't think God called me down here just to make strawberry shortcake, all day!
I've also spent a lot of time creating this website, today, and organizing my pictures. That's been a lot of fun. Now I'm getting ready to do a Bible Study that all of us missionary women are doing, together. Then I'll probably play the guitar and sing for a while. Then I'll call a few people on Skype, read, and go to bed.
I love Saturdays!
Cooking is one of the really fun parts of being a missionary, for me, but it can also take up a LOT of time, if I let it. Depending on where you live, you can't always buy all of the convenience foods you're used to in the US. And you can't go out to eat as much, either. For me, it's a fun challenge to see if I can use my creativity to make food that reminds me of home. Some people find it frustrating, though, because food preparation does take up a lot of time. So does cleaning. And laundry. Most people wash their clothes, by hand, instead of using a washing machine. And nobody uses clothes dryers. They all hang their clothes out on a line, like the Amish. So just keeping up with the cooking, cleaning, and laundry take a lot of time. That's why most people pay maids to help them. In the US only the rich people have maids. But here, it's very common. The maids don't get paid very much, but since there aren't any other good jobs around, they're thankful just to have a job. But like I said, missionaries are great cooks because they have to learn how to make everything from scratch. Missionary kids are lucky, that way! Another reason that missionaries can spend a lot of time in the kitchen is because we make such good desserts that everybody always asks us to make cakes for their birthdays! Like I said, I love it, but I do have to be careful that it doesn't take up too much time, because I don't think God called me down here just to make strawberry shortcake, all day!
I've also spent a lot of time creating this website, today, and organizing my pictures. That's been a lot of fun. Now I'm getting ready to do a Bible Study that all of us missionary women are doing, together. Then I'll probably play the guitar and sing for a while. Then I'll call a few people on Skype, read, and go to bed.
I love Saturdays!
4 comments:
Hey, it's not just the Amish who hang their washing out; most Brits do too!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! If it's so rare in the US because EVERYONE has dryers, no wonder the world blames you for global warming :)
Fiona x
P.S. I love you really! And I hope your strawberry jam lasts a long time so you can enjoy it forever! And your Saturday sounds perfect! I've just had the Stouts around for dinner; exhausting but lots of fun!!1
You are such the hostess with the mostest! And I KNOW it's not just the Amish. Eric and my grandmother do, as well. But this blog is intended for my young readers in Northern Indiana, and as horribly politically uncorrect as I knew it was when I first contemplated writing it, the ones up there who hang their laundry are predominatly Amish. But who knows? I think my countrymen and women have begun to care about the environment since I left, so maybe I'll go back to a whole new world! And it's not our dryers that are ruining the world. It's the 3.5 cars/household.
I can't wait to share this blog with the kids! I'm sorry I haven't had a chance to respond back to the email you sent last week. It is on my To Do list. Isn't there such a blessing in observing the Sabbath!! This is definitely a subject that I could teach on forever. Many people don't realize the awesome blessing they're missing.
I'm so embarassed. Incorrect. Politically incorrect. And Kristine, don't you dare worry about not responding to my e-mail the same week that I sent it! Coorespondance is by far my missionary achilles' heel, and I'm single and childless! Grace, grace, grace. The very fact that it's already made it onto the To-Do list is impressive enough :)
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