Adventure with Eggplant

Eggplant. An egg that grows on a plant. A plant that lays eggs.

No?

Well, does it at least look like an egg?

It's bright purple.

Bright purple...so maybe an Easter egg?

Except it's long and skinny, at least over here. And even in the States it's more squash-shaped.

Oh well, who cares why it's called eggplant? Actually, it's quite pretty. In a world where things don't rot, I would add some to my Christmas tree hulu garland. It's delicious too. Eggplant is one of our favorite things to eat over here, and I eat it almost everyday. One of my absolute favorite dishes is one that has ground pork or beef and eggplant over rice. Mmm-mmm-mmm.

So the other day, I bought two for about 30 cents and decided to cook it for the first time! I actually made an Indian dish - eggplant curry. Not entirely authentic because I don't have garam masala, but it turned out pretty delish, and I had the satisfaction of knowing everything in there was good for me! I even made my own fresh ginger-garlic paste (note: DO NOT touch that stuff with your bare fingers, you will be smelling it for hours even after washing them). If you want the recipe, look up eggplant curry on allrecipes.com and it should come up. I was really proud that it was edible because it was my first time to cook eggplant and also my first time to cook Indian (unless you count rajmah, which is basically like chili, just with Indian spices...that's some good stuff too).

Here's a picture of the final product.

Depending on how much you like Indian food, that may or may not look appetizing to you, but it was a pretty good lunch! Eggplant: conquered. Now that we have obtained chili-garlic sauce and oyster sauce, my next eggplant attempt will be our favorite local ground-pork-eggplant dish. Yay!

Hold on to your heart

Hold on to your heart
though others may say
a big heart
will just bring pain one day

Hold on to it
though so many believe
it's better to rip it out
while you grieve

The Maker rejoices
when searching he sees
One heart that still
refuses to freeze

One heart unashamed
to know others' pain
That for so many, so often,
dying is gain

One heart that can still
rejoice in a small
victory that to others
may not matter at all

One heart that can still
with warmth wrap its arm
around another
who can return nothing but harm

One heart that is steady
assured, brave, and strong
to stay and fight
when leaving wouldn't be wrong

Don't listen to those
who would have you hide
who are made uncomfortable
by your lack of pride

Don't listen to those
who think it is strange
that you leave such power
in such close range

When a heart is on fire
it can raise dry bones
bring life from death
warm flesh from stones

Some think it a danger
inconvenient to care
But their cold hearts are now
even now in death's snare

The heart is a weakness
or so it's perceived
but only by the heart
has one ever believed

And only by love
can we overcome hate
can we overcome death
and re-learn to create

So hold on to your heart
though the whole world may mock
though your cross may become
a laughingstock

Your heart is a treasure
a wellspring to guard
to cultivate and nurture -

Don't let it grow hard.

Becky's Top 5 Funny Bible Verses

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Sometimes when I am reading the Bible to gain wisdom, insight, conviction, etc., I also gain some laughter. Here are a few verses that crack me up, in no particular order.

1. Proverbs 25:16

If you find honey, eat just enough--too much of it, and you will vomit.


Actually, it's funnier in the King James version: 
Hast thou found honey? eat so much as is sufficient for thee, lest thou be filled therewith, and vomit it.


Wise words, wise words.

2. Proverbs 27:14

If a man loudly blesses his neighbor early in the morning, it will be taken as a curse.


Yes. I wholeheartedly agree with this statement.

3. Proverbs 25:17

Seldom set foot in your neighbor's house--too much of you, and he will hate you.


'Nuff said.

4. Numbers 22:30

The donkey said to Balaam, “Am I not your own donkey, which you have always ridden, to this day? Have I been in the habit of doing this to you?" "No," he said.


("No?" That's it? I would've jumped off that donkey and been like OMG A TALKING DONKEY!!!)

Again, funnier in King James:

And the ass said unto Balaam, Am not I thine ass, upon which thou hast ridden ever since I was thine unto this day? was I ever wont to do so unto thee? and he said, Nay.

And he said, Nay. That's funny just by itself. 

Especially since he's talking to a donkey and not a horse...I mean, come on. It should be "And he said, Bray."

5. Acts 2:15

This one needs some background info. So after the Holy Spirit makes it raaaaain (fire, that is), the apostles start speaking in a bunch of different languages they don't know in front of tons of people. Crazy stuff. Since everyone in the crowd knows these aren't ridiculously educated men who just happen to know every language in the known world, they say, "They have had too much wine!" in 2:13. (Seriously, get me some of that wine if it can make me talk in a language I don't know...it would be a lot of help while living overseas!) Peter, of course, gets up and corrects them, but in what way? Does he give a sermon on the sinfulness of being drunk? Does he get offended at the thought that such holy men of God could possibly be drunk? Here's how he reasons: 

"These men are not drunk... It's only nine in the morning!"

Can't argue with that.

Honorable Mention

Another one that didn't make the top five but that is definitely an honorable mention is Acts 20:9, in which  Paul rambles on for so long that a young guy named Eutychus actually falls asleep on the windowsill and then falls out and dies. Don't worry, Paul raises him back to life afterwards. No big deal. But parents who really don't want their kids to fall asleep in church should definitely read them this for a bedtime story!

The Hard Places

from the book Kisses from Katie by Katie Davis, p. 252


"I have learned along my journey that if I really want to follow Jesus, I will go to the hard places. Being a Christ follower means being acquainted with sorrow. We must know sorrow to be able to fully appreciate joy. Joy costs pain, but the pain is worth it. After all, the murder had to take place before the resurrection.

I'll be honest: The hard places can seem unbearable. It's dark and it's scary, and even though I know God said He will never leave or forsake me, sometimes it's so dark that I just can't see Him. But then the most incredible thing happens: God take me by the hand and walks me straight out of the hard place and into the beauty on the other side. He whispers to me to be thankful, that even this will be for His good.

It takes a while sometimes, coming out of the dark place. Sometimes God and I come out into a desert and he has to carry me through that too. Sometimes I slip a lot on the way out and He has to keep coming back to get me. Always, on the other side is something beautiful, because He has used the hard places to increase my sense of urgency and to align my desires with His. I realize that it was there that He was closest to me, even in the times when I didn't see Him. I realize that the hard places are good because it is there that I gained more wisdom, and though with wisdom comes sorrow, on the other side of sorrow is joy. And a funny thing happens when I realize this: I want to go to the hard place again. Again and again and again.

So we go. This is where our family is today and where I hope to stay - loving, because He first loved us. Going into the hard places, entering into the sorrow because He entered for us first and because by His grace, redemption and beauty are on the other side."