I was saying this to someone this week because each of us are the same but different. Everyone has a story that is unique to them. We come from different circumstances and yet have experienced similar hurts and traumas. You can’t necessarily look at someone and guess their life story. We dress up, we dress down, we wear costumes to depict our lives and how we wish to be seen. If you could see my sweater that I have on right now, you could see that I’ve had a day 🙂 I’m not planning on going out in public with this sweater; it is headed to the laundry this evening. It tells my story of what I did today.
This morning started with last night because a friend who I know from the the temple, suggested that I make my own almond milk in my blender. I was disheartened by all the additives in commercial almond milk. I bought a nut milk bag for straining and put a small amount of almonds to soak in filtered water in a glass jar. We don’t have a glass bowl here in this apartment (off to Marshall’s I’ll go). Erik shakes his head but I tell him, “Hey, it’s cheaper than buying a nut milk machine!” Almonds need to soak 8-10 hours or overnight.
I drained the almonds this morning and gave them a rinse a couple of times. Into the Vitamix they went along with more filtered water, salt and a wee splash of vanilla. If you want it sweetened you could add a couple of dates. I don’t like sweetened, so plain it is. I blended the mixture for 1 minute and then used my strainer bag over a bowl. After squeezing the pulp fairly dry, I poured the milk into a jar and put it in the fridge. I spread out the almond pulp on a baking sheet and put it in the oven for 3 hours at 175 F. I actually forgot about it and it went a little longer. After letting it cool, I put it back into the blender and more finely ground the pulp. Now I have almond flour! No waste and fresh delicious products are ready to use. Part of my protocol is to not consume dairy. My only thing I wish I had was cheeses, particularly, French cheeses. I do eat sheep cheeses and enjoy those. I was not a milk drinker so I do not miss that. My dehydrators are at home and those can be used to dry out the almond pulp as well. Remnants of almond flour dusted my sweater.
I was fortunate to be able to sew today and if you know, you know. There is a saying, “You can tell a quilter by the threads she wears.” I am adorned with colorful threads as well. Then supper was created and I am so tired that a forkful ended up hitting my sweater before landing on the floor. So, I have salsa bits and refried beans on me as well. What a hot mess! Does it define who I am? Not usually, but I need to be more concerned with how the Lord views me.
An interesting thing has occured. Two days this past week, I was so tired that I couldn’t keep my eyes open, so I sat back and had little naps on those afternoons. Very curiously, my blood sugar dropped into normal range on both those days. I will continue the experiement. Rest is vital for healing and I’m hoping this is part of my healing journey.
We had an interesting family come to the temple which follows the adage about not judging a book by it’s cover. Grandpa became very wealthy from a company he developed and the lovely thing was that if you don’t know them, you would never know their story. The grandchildren were polite and treated us with respect. It was a joy to serve them.
Sometimes we wear masks to protect ourselves, sometimes to fit in with our peer group. What message are we trying to portray? Sometimes we don’t realize that we are trying to portray a persona that isn’t in best form for us in the long run. What best serves your needs in the eternities?
Both Erik and I like to be active and try to stay healthy. He bought a 30 pound weighted vest for rucksacking. He noticed that his heart rate wasn’t getting up as high as he wanted with the 20 pound vest. I am still bouncing but noticed that I can spring up into sitting and standing positions easily because of developing my core muscles.
We are getting to the time when the six month missionaries will be heading home. It will be different without them as they return to their normal lives. Erik was plotting out a route for us in April when our mission is finished. There are a lot of temples on that route and it would be really nice to see them.
It was great to be back with our Spanish Branch on Sunday. It had been a month since we had been together with them. I have been doing some more French lessons lately and have switched to another app for Spanish. I was worried that I would be too rusty without speaking Spanish for the past month. All is well, my middle-aged brain still remembered Spanish, haha! We will be having Compartir next Sunday after meetings. I signed up to bring dessert (postre). It gives me an opportunity to remove contraband from my pantry and feed it to others.
https://cookiesandcups.com/caramel-stuffed-krispie-treats/
Now, these cupcakes are legal for me and I can’t wait to give them a try. I made some pumpkin cupcakes this past week that turned out like little pumpkin pies. Oh, they were delicious! My dear husband has a contraband cupboard above the stove that has food with gluten in it and sugar. This week he fell victim to a little pumpkin pie (mass produced) and brought it home to his stash. He said that it was better than he expected and I’m glad he enjoyed it.
Despite what you wear or how you wish you looked, these ten ways to succeed in life are a good list to have as a guide or to check ourselves. The Lord reminds me every so often about number 7. I try to live joyfully, but there are days when injustice makes me want to go crazy. Having a cheerful countenance and not complaining does help my heart. I do know that it is my weakness and I need to guard against complaining in my conversations.
Have a fantastic week! We love you and wish you many blessings and happy days.
cherylnaglis 