But the greatest of these is love

After work today, I went to a local grocery store for a school fundraiser. I helped bag people's groceries. On the way out, people were collecting receipts. I literally just stood there bagging groceries for strangers. People thought I worked there despite wearing street clothes.

One woman gave me a hug after I bagged her groceries. It was a genuine hug, too, not one of those weak hugs.

I think this event was so moving for two reasons. The first is that I'm fascinated that acomplete stranger insisted on giving me a hug for something so common. I used to work at a grocery store; I actually liked bagging groceries. It's my version of puzzles (I hate actual puzzles). Take note I use the word "liked" after not having worked in a grocery store for 5 years.

The second reason is that it caused me to think about how often I hug others in my own life. There are some friends that I do hug every time I see him or her. Yet, in general, I do not hug others very often.

I often remember the movie Crash and the following line: "Graham: It's the sense of touch. In any real city, you walk, you know? You brush past people, people bump into you. In L.A., nobody touches you. We're always behind this metal and glass. I think we miss that touch so much, that we crash into each other, just so we can feel something" (imdb.com).

The woman who hugged me has no idea how much I appreciated that hug. So, it also makes me think about how I can never be sure the effect of my actions upon another person. I never know what I say will be remembered by my students. I know the phrases I'd like them to remember, but the phrases I consider unimportant may be the very phrases they remember for a lifetime. Of course, I'm assuming I say something important enough to be remembered in the future. Maybe it's not the words that are important but the high fives and the pats on the back.

A day in the life of a Speech Language Pathologist

This picture is from 2 years ago. A student wrote "I love Miss. D." My students steal my heart every day. I am so blessed to see them learn and to see them grow. The classroom teacher sees them every day for a year. I see them 1-2 times a week, but I have been working with some of the same students for 3 years.

Today a student was asking me if I'd rather be in school or have a job. I told him I have the best of both worlds with my job. I get a paycheck but follow a school schedule. But that's not why I love my job.

I have a lot of fun interacting with my students and listening to them. Kids love to talk; I think it's very important that they have an audience, even if it's an audience of one. Being heard is important. I enjoy listening to my students, even if I cannot understand them.

So what do I do all day? I really do play all day in between the paperwork, testing, report writing, and scheduling of meetings (and rescheduling; of 7 scheduled meetings this week, only 4 occurred).

I watched a group of first graders play with toys and describe elaborate scenarios. I listened to them tell me all about transformers and Optimus Prime. I helped a group of second grade students write each step of their soccer trick. I played Uno with a group of third grade boys working on producing their speech sounds spontaneously. I played Guess Who with a 7th grade student. I showed a few yoga poses to a group of 4th and 5th grade boys but found it more effective when one of the students taught the poses.

A student gave me a Tweety silly band.

I worked with a 6th grade student who seemed to be having an off day.

I took orders from a first grade student as he asked me to put the envelope I needed him to give to his mom in his cubby. I laughed as I let him delegate. Perhaps one day he will be a manager or CEO.

I was asked a question to which I didn't know the answer. I wish I could remember the question; this student always has a question.

I watch these students grow, and I pray to God that He uses me to help them.

Standing on my soap box

While in Chicago, I read the following article in the NY Times, in my Ipod touch.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/11/07/us/07bully.html?pagewanted=1&sq=tolerance%20public%20school&st=cse&scp=1

This article merged my old "secular humanist" world with my current "Christian" world. The article reminded me as to why I'm not a fan of the label "Christian," yet I can finally accept it, because I am a follower of Christ.

The article discusses how school districts are trying to promote acceptance of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgendered students and families while receiving backlash from heterosexual families concerned that students are hearing about such topics too explicitly or too soon.

Here is a haunting quote: “Anyone who reads this document can see that it promotes acceptance of the homosexual lifestyle,” one mother said at a six-hour school board meeting in late September.

I believe acceptance is precisely the point! Her quote seems to indicate that American culture has not yet fully accepted the homosexual lifestyle.

Here is when the term "Christian" begins to be thrown into the mix: “Of course we’re all against bullying,” Mr. DeMato, one of numerous pastors who opposed the plan, said in an interview. “But the Bible says very clearly that homosexuality is wrong, and Christians don’t want the schools to teach subjects that are repulsive to their values.”

As a Christian (and I hope I don't screw up the gospel in this post), my heart sank as I read the article. Who made Christians the ultimate judges of what to teach?

How dare someone challenge Christian values.

So, lets discuss Christian values. The Bible also says not to lie, steal, covet thy neighbor's goods (which seems to be the core of capitalism), etc. Clearly, we are all guilty of violating God's laws. The law is intended to show us our own need for a Savior. Enter Jesus Christ. He came to die for our sins. Who did Jesus spend much of his time with aside from the Apostles? The sick, the abandoned outcasts of society, prostitutes, tax-collectors: the people with whom the Pharisees (a self-righteous group who made up laws to follow to please God) refused to associate.

Therefore, as Christians, I'm fairly certain we should spend our time loving those who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgendered.

This last quote moves me as an educator. But one of the objecting parents, Tammi Shulz, who describes herself as a traditional Christian, said, “I just don’t think it’s great to talk about homosexuality with 5-year-olds.”

It seems like a valid point, correct? How can one argue with such a point? Who wants to steal a piece of innocence from a child? This year is my third year as a speech language pathologist. This year, I work with a 4 year old who has two mothers. The little girl is adopted and will be given a plethora of opportunities that her (heterosexual) birth mother could not provide. The other day a kindergarten teacher told me how one of the female students I work with wants to be a boy. There is a first grade student who also has two mothers.

Like it or not, age 5 may not be too young after all.

Out of curiosity, does the term "traditional" Christian imply there is a "radical" or "liberal" Christian? Jesus and his teachings were radical. He calls us to do radical things, like love those who are poor and marginalized. He calls us to love people who make us feel uncomfortable. I fail at this all the time, which is why I praise Jesus for loving everyone. He loves the "traditional" Christians, the rich, the poor, the atheists; he loves you and me. Jesus knows who we are and loves us so much.

I truly would like some thoughts and feedback from my Christian friends. Part of the reason why I stopped believing in God was related to how "Christians" did not accept homosexual people. I'm new to the Christian world and I'd like to hear others' opinions.

I run to be

Nike's slogan for their 2010 marathon was "I run to be" with space for each participant to describe why he or she runs. After much contemplation, I finally have an answer. I run to be SOCIAL.

I began running cross country my junior year of high school. Why? I joined the team because most of my friends were on the team. It was another way to hang out with them. The underlying theme responsible for my running is also to burn calories. I love to eat, as evidenced by my many posts about food. While I type, I'm baking pumpkin cookies. The reason I'm able to continue running is because it's a social activity for me.

After high school, I stopped running. I'd go for the occasional jog; sometimes, I'd even jog consistently for 2 weeks. Running was not an activity I could maintain by myself.

For eight years, I essentially stopped running.

Then, I accepted Jesus as my Savior. He really does know our innermost desires. I met Kristen. She started running by herself in April 2009. I invited myself to tag along. She graciously allowed me to crash her morning jog. We have met 2-3 times a week at 6 in the morning to jog or walk or do (pre) prenatal yoga since then. We have welcomed Amy into our morning routine as well. Not only do we have someone else to hold us accountable to get out of bed in the morning to exercise, but we are also able to share our lives with each other. Their counsel has been a crucial part of my life. And now, since Kristen and Amy are both pregnant, I'm able to take mental notes about the joys and quirks of pregnancy, if I should ever need such notes.

In January of this year, Kristen mentioned running a half marathon. It was something we were talking about. Not once did I imagine I'd run 2 half marathons in 2010. I always thought running for 2-3 hours was crazy. I even called it stupid. I would never run that far. I'm learning to remove the word "never" from my vocabulary, so I don't have to say that I was wrong.

Running is part of my routine. Now, I can jog by myself, but I prefer to run with a friend, because I run to be social.

Power bar success

Before I left for San Francisco, I shared my plan to bring enough food for the trip so I could spend my money at retail stores.

I packed at least 16 pumpkin power bars (2 different recipes) and 12 cocoa power balls. I also made 4 peanut butter, pumpkin butter, and jelly sandwiches. I brought 5 apples and home made trail mix. I also brought my own tea bags plus an empty Nalgene bottle.

I spent 2.74 on a tea at a cafe on Sunday to get out of my hotel, warm up after walking in the rain, and to use free internet.

Twice I asked for a cup of hot water (once at Philz coffee--the dude taking my order looked at my like I was crazy).

As you can see in the picture, I visited one of my favorite stores, Lush. I also bought a pair of earrings at Nordstrom's for a penny. Seriously, just one cent is all I gave to the cashier.

All of the restaurants in San Francisco were very tempting. I contemplated treating myself many times, especially at some cupcake store called Cako. But I stuck to my budget. This just means I need to plan another trip to the Bay area and choose restaurants over shopping.

A Desi Girl

What I made for lunch today--

mango lassi:
Bottom layer: grapes and toasted almonds

then raita, then garbanzo beans, and then the curried chicken

"Desi Girl" is the name of a song in which I have learned some choreography to in my Bollywood dance class. A desi girl is an American born Indian girl. I have decided that I am a pseudo-desi girl. My friend likes to sing "Caucasian girl" instead of Desi girl when we listen to the song.

Anyway, today my delightful Bollywood dance partner in crime came over to practice. I decided I'd make an Indian dish for lunch. I almost made chicken vindaloo as an homage to Outsourced. I found a fantastic recipe on epicurious.com. It was so good, I now want to make Indian food all the time. I bought garlic naan at Trader Joe's, and I made up my own recipe for a mango lassi.

Here is the recipe for the curried chicken, spiced garbanzo beans, and raita: http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Curried-Chicken-Salad-with-Spiced-Chickpeas-and-Raita-243206

For the mango lassi, I blended mango, mint, nonfat plain greek yogurt, and skim milk. I used about 2 oz of yogurt, between 1/2 and a whole cup of milk, 5 or so mango sliced that Trader Joe's sells pre-cut, and a some mint. I think I should have added more mango.

Pumpkin power bars take 2

I tried this recipe: http://lilveggiepatch.com/2010/08/28/chococolate-pumpkin-protein-bars/

I substituted ground flax seed for protein powder; maple syrup for agave; dried cranberries for prunes.

I was only able to spread the mixture into about half of an 8 x 13 pan; however I cut 9 bars, and I believe the recipe said 8 servings.

I definitely prefer the taste of this power bar to the first version I made. I think it's because this recipe has peanut butter.

I ate one for breakfast this morning along with a baby apple and a glass of milk; it was filling. Delicious and nutritious!