Sushi Night!

   So last night was so fun!  Sarah and I went to Autumn and Brad's to spend the evening, and Autumn and I made Sushi!  I love Sushi, although I do not have the opportunity to eat it very often and I certainly have never made Sushi before.

   I watched the master Sushi maker (Autumn) go as she pulled out her roasted seaweed and began to spread the moist rice on top of the seaweed.  "Now you want to make sure you mash the rice down and make it as thin as possible," she said as she was nearly finished pressing the rice, "and be sure to leave a couple inches of seaweed without rice because when you roll it all up you spread some water on it and the seaweed sticks to itself.  It's magic!"  (mostly paraphrased)  After she spread the rice, it was now time to put in the shrimp and the avocado.  She carefully rolled up the Sushi, spread water on the seaweed so it would stick to itself, and cut it to perfect size.  "You're wasting some on the ends!  Oh, that's a great one don't throw it away!"  yelled Brad.  "This one is too small.  If I had my own Sushi restaurant I would throw this away because it isn't perfectly the same size as the others," as she scooped up the unfortunately tiny piece of Sushi and dropped it in the trash.  Brad threw a side-long look at me and I saw the sigh in his face.  I gave him a nod of understanding.

So, now it was my turn, only this time I would be trying to imitate the master...as if anyone could imitate Autumn's incredible cooking!!  As Autumn started slicing the fresh Sashimi (raw fish, "Sushi grade"!) I began to spread the rice, it was much harder than it looked as the rice was very sticky!  I dipped my fingers in the bowl of water and grabbed another bit of rice with my right hand as I wiped the sweat off my brow with my left hand, this is tough work!  I finally spread all the rice and now it was time to add the Sashimi and the avocado, then roll it up.  As I began to cut the Sushi I looked up to see a distressed look on Autumn's face, the first cut was a bit rough, I admit, but I didn't give up.  I pressed on.  "Now cut back and forth with a little pressure and let the knife do all the work," Autumn said as the next cut went perfectly.  I did it...I had made Sushi!  I felt like I was on top of the world!  The next cuts went perfectly and most were the same size. (I decided that if I threw away the one's that were different sizes we wouldn't have much Sushi to eat...haha.)  When we were finished making the Sushi, we realized Brad and Sarah had snuck into the living room to avoid the smell.  "Get back in here!!" yelled Autumn, "you have to stay in here with us!!"  They reluctantly obliged.

Man, that was good Sushi.  I'm excited I now know how to make it!  "And it's exciting that you can get all the ingredients at Safeway!  And it's all so cheap!" exclaimed Autumn as she masterfully picked up a piece of Sushi with her chopsticks and dipped it in her soy sauce/wasabi concoction.  Brad and Sarah gave her a disgusted look as they continued to dip their pretzels in molten chocolate.  So, if you ever need to make Sushi and don't know how, I will freely give out my...I mean...Autumn's number and she can walk you through it!

Grace and Peace,
Aaron

Prayer for those in Haiti...

    On January 12, Haiti experienced an earthquake near the city of Port-au-Prince which had 2 million people.  Our hearts are broken for our Haitian brothers and sisters who have lost their loved ones, homes, and livelihood.  Please join us in offering prayers on their behalf...

"Oh God,

    Please heal those who have been affected by this earthquake. Let those who have died now be in peace and find rest.  Please comfort the peoples affected by this disaster. Bring their communities together in love, in prayer, and help them care well for each other.  Let the world community pray and assist the people who were affected by this disaster with much compassion and show their caring in practical and abundant ways.  Let those affected by this earthquake rebuild better than before.  Let them be strong. May good come out of this time of sorrow.  

    Bless the earth.  Bring peace and harmony to the lands, to the sky, to the waters... If there be a need for the earth to release its tensions in the future, let it do so in a way that is gentle and harms no one. Let the waters return to their natural ebb and flow. Let the earth be calm.  Peace, Peace, Peace... Be calm. Be still. Let the healing begin..." -- a prayer from beliefnet.com

And a prayer for those who are there now giving aid and support in whatever way possible...

"    O Lord our heavenly Father, whose blessed Son came not to be ministered unto but to minister: Bless, we beseech thee, all who, following in his steps, give themselves to the service of others; that with wisdom, patience, and courage, they may minister in his name to the suffering, the friendless, and the  needy; for the love of him who laid down his life for us, the same thy Son our Savior Jesus Christ, who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen." 
-- a prayer from the Book of Common Prayer

A Beginning?

So, up until this point I have decided against blogging, as I have been lazy and never wanted to take the time, never really have anything to write about, and for fear that I would get all these people to follow my blog and then if I eventually quit writing, disappointment and despair among my friends and family would soon follow... and no friend could wish that upon another!  But to the risk of all who decide follow, I want to at least give it a go and see what happens.

Some people can gather their thoughts and put it beautifully into poems, songs, and stories.  I on the other hand, do not have that gift.  I can gather my thoughts and talk about them, but they usually end up in half poems, a theme for a song, and stories that usually start with a point but then follow so many tangents neither I nor the listener remember what the original point was.

I have not been gifted with the ability to write sensibly, yet when I write, I do feel like things make more sense when it was a jumbled mess before.  It may be a different jumbled mess altogether, but at least I know what I was thinking before, even if nobody else does.

So, if you should decide to struggle through half poems, never finished songs, and stories that usually make sense only to me, I would love to have you along for the ride.  Each of you reading this now have been dear friends and family that have been apart of what makes me who I am today, and for that I am truly grateful. (I'm not saying in this last sentence that you have made me the jumbled mess I am today...haha, no, I have done great work of that on my own, but the part of me that is better for having met you, this is the part of me of which I speak....errr, uh....write)

We have alot going on now and soon will be going to New Zealand for a whole month, so I am hoping against hope that I will be able to find something to write about soon, haha!  I will definitely try to at least write once a week though, and sometimes I might do the unthinkable and write twice in one week!

So, for now, if you are not here in Wyoming, I hope you enjoy your warm weather because when it's a nostril freezing -5 to -25 during the day here, even 5 degrees would be warm to us!!!

Grace and peace to you all...

I leave you with a prayer I have been contemplating lately by Saint Francis of Assisi:

"Lord, make me an instrument of your peace; where there is hatred, let me sow love; where there is injury, pardon; where there is doubt, faith; where there is despair, hope; where there is darkness, light; and where there is sadness, joy. O Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console; to be understood, as to understand; to be loved, as to love; for it is in giving that we receive, it is in pardoning that we are pardoned, and it is in dying that we are born to Eternal Life. Amen."