All things yummy....

 

 

As things start to settle more and more (as in us getting settled not the political situation), every day and it's schedule is becoming more 'normal'. Roughly my mornings are filled with coloring, entertaining, and teaching. A huge part of my time is also spent in the kitchen, and on my computer looking for creativity. Thank You Pinterest!!!

 

I guess you could say in the morning I'm teaching others and in the afternoons I'm trying to teach myself. The kitchen has been my grounds for experimentation, and trial and error. At home I'm no stranger to the kitchen. Mother instituted the H.I.T. program in our home at a young age. For those of you that are wondering, H.I.T stood for Homemaker In Training. Don't I have such a witty mom :)! Anyway the 'program' meant those mother thought old enough (mainly me!), were responsible for planning and preparing supper one night a week. This of course did not exclude you from helping in the kitchen the rest of the week. But the difference was you had the 'privilege' of coming up with the menu for that evening. And learning the age old lesson of trial and error.
As a young girl I was the child that thrived on a scheduled life! I remember when August came around I was sooo excited the first day of school! Not necessarily because of the school part. But more so because we had a brand new schedule that would tell me what to do all day every day for the next number of months. So when the HIT program started, I had a little note book that I planned out meals and the different things I wanted to make or try. My mother has always been a little different! And I'm so glad she is!!!! I never understood how she could on a whim decide what to make for supper at 4:00! That may work for her BUT, when I have a house of my own I shall always have a menu planned a week out. Or so I thought. Hm! How's that working out for you now Sarah?! 
Thanks to my flexible mother, and all the unexpected twists in life that have happened in the past 2 years...today I'm able to take life as it comes a little more. And no I have no idea what I making tomorrow! Even though my 12 year old self would shake her head at my 'go with the flow' attitude today, I'm so thankful for the way that mom would spring supper on me late afternoon without warning.

 Despite graduating from the HIT program, it's a bit of a learning curve when everything your used to making, either you can't find half the ingredients or there are too many highly priced items. So it's basically starting over at square one. I can count on my one hand the times that I've actually followed a recipe 100% since we've arrived. I've done a lot of improvising, and a lot of random dumping (with fingers crossed behind my back). They say the best chefs don't use recipes...right?

 

So what do we eat? Produce is very inexpensive, so a lot of fresh fruits and vegetables. Rice, lentils and other grains have become staples. Meat is stretched, and Dairy is also used sparingly. I did make rice at home...but not very often. So I've had to go digging for different ways to use and incorporate it into a meal. And lentils...completely foreign ingredient that never stepped foot in the Hess kitchen! What do you do with them? And you could stretch chicken in a casserole dish...but what about when all the casserole dishes your familiar with call for Cream of (fill in the blank) Soup, and it doesn't exist. And cheese! Every recipe calls for cheese in some shape or form. It's amazing how as soon as you realize you don't have something, every recipe you look at calls for that one ingredient!

 

  

 

Challah Bread used on Shabbat

This was one of those naïve purchases. I guess you could call it a golden loaf of bread. I paid close to 12 shekels for it at a super market the first week. The other day I got a loaf at the market for almost half that. You live and you learn :)!

This is Israeli Salad

We eat a lot of cucumbers and tomatoes. And I threw in black olives cause we had some....and you can't go wrong with olives. I love olives! When Dads making pizza I can easily eat half the can before any gets on the pizza. And at EBI, one of my roommates loved them as much as I did. So it was not uncommon for us to eat a can of black olives in the evenings. But after living here...I don't know if I'll ever be able to eat olives out of a can again! These are incredible! They are full of strong flavor, and firm. I really want to bring some home with me. So maybe if you are really nice till then I'll let you try some :)!

Dried fruits at the market

One of the olive stands. Oh and you buy everything by the kilo (1 kilo. = little over 2 lbs.).

So 24 shekels per kilo would be approx. 6 US Dollars, which would be a little less then 3 Dollars a pound.

Going to the market your not only converting Shekels to Dollars in your head your also then taking that price and converting the kilo. price to the price per pound. It is definitely getting easier though. And there is less and less head work, as you begin to learn what the going rate for different things are.

  This is Lentil Soup! I've made it a couple times already! It's best when its accompanied by fresh Pita Bread and Humus!

 Meet Israeli Couscous! This is a dish that has become a favorite! It's couscous, peas, and chicken chunks, in a creamy sauce with a slight lemon-ey taste. Couscous is kind of like rice, except it's not thin and long. Although I have never eaten a fish egg....the consistency reminds me of what I would imagine a fish egg to be like! Or if that totally grosses you out, you could describe it as a grain version of tapioca.

One other fun little fact. For Pancakes we don't use Pancake syrup....we use Date Syrup :)! And Figs just started their season, so we are enjoying them as well!

Enjoy your brand new week!

Oh one other thing! Dad said this weekend there were a lot people asking about my knee. Thanks for your concern it means a lot! It's been three weeks since the pain started so I guess I was starting to just get used to putting up with the annoyance. Last night without thinking I bounded down the steps, got to the bottom and realized what I had just done. Wait! I just ran down the steps! There was no pain, and it felt good to not have to 'crawl' down the three stories. On the way home I was showing Jack how to skip, and was able to run up the stairs when we got to the apartment. It's a small thing but it felt so good. And the whole time my walking was pain free! PTL! So hopefully I'm out of the woods, and it won't flare up again like it did last Friday.
Thanks again for you concern and encouragement! It really does make a big difference!

A Plane kind of Day

Today seemed to be a plane kind of day. I was not in the same room as the children, and realized how quiet it was...and then I heard the boys laughing. Oh boy what are they getting into!

I walked out and Bob came running up to me.

"Sarah! Princess says she's flying to Pennsylvania and that's Grandmas house (pointing to their room), and she's talking to Grandma!"

 

 

 



 

So Bob and Princess fly and 'visit family', while Jack builds an airplane out of Lego's. And they laugh and chatter about their home in Pennsylvania, and tell me about Grandma & Grandpa, and about their friends Keira, Hallie, Cara, and Chase. And Brielle (baby doll) is commonly heard around the house as Princess carries her around and takes care of her.

He's just the same...

....really He is. Time won't change Him, and a different continent won't either. He is just the same.

 

You know how when your little you have all these expectations or ways you think things work. But then you eventually get out of your box and realize that they were all wrong. And you continue walking on, a little wiser, vowing to never let yourself sink into believing that something is one way, when you know its another. Yeah, I always thought that true growth could only happen away from the ordinary. Like a conference, retreat, or maybe a soul searching weekend with your best friends. But definitely never at home. No, at home life was just....normal. Home was where you hit the snooze button 10 times before dragging yourself out of bed. And while you may have had good intentions of starting your day off right the night before, well something else catches your eye. And you soon find yourself catching up on the latest news, surfing the web, or standing in the kitchen retelling the events of your evening last night. Home was where your social calendar was always staring back at you full to bursting. Work, Work, Work, a couple different things on the weekend, and Sunday to catch your breath. Home was where there was never enough time to dedicate to the important things in life. But away from home! Those mountain top experiences...that's what life was supposed to be like. The reason the life inside me was suffering...was because He was more real somewhere else...or so I thought.

 

I remember a few years ago, when for the first time I was away from home for more then a week. I went with HIGH expectations. I was going to come back a totally different person. So much deeper and wiser then when I had left. And my family was going to be amazed at my maturity, because I was going to experience Him there. Right now your probably either laughing at my ignorance, or quietly smiling to yourself cause you've experienced the same lofty expectations. While I definitely learned some things, and got to experience something different, I went home dissatisfied and frustrated. Because life was still the same. I still had to drag myself out of bed every morning, and there were still other things clamoring for my attention. And unfortunately I was often easily distracted. There was a war going on inside me that I couldn't identify or put my finger on. I wanted results without work. I wanted growth to come merely through experiencing life in a different place, without any effort required on my part. But it doesn't quite work like that. Life is work, growth takes work...it takes living intentionally, which can be down right exhausting. And no place on earth is a 'hot spot' for growth. He is everywhere.

 

A kind hearted lady gave me a hug, and blessed me with her kind words. Telling me how wonderful of an opportunity lay before me. She exclaimed about all the wonderful things I would experience. How things I read would come alive because of living across the world. And how life changing this next step would be. Everything she said was with the attitude of, You can't help but grow in such a place!

But the sad truth is you can go to such a place, and come back the same person. Oh yes you will definitely gain knowledge about a different culture and land. You can't help but pick that up unless you lock yourself in a bomb shelter the whole time. But deep, deep down, you can stay the same. A different location isn't going to magically make your carnal flesh disappear. That takes work. Intentional living. It looks good on paper. Hard work in real life.

Life is definitely different, but its a lot the same too. There's something called Self that follows you were ever you go. Whether you move to the next neighborhood, the next state, or across the world, it's still there, and He is too. The signs on passing busses are different, the spoken language, the daily schedule. But it's a lot the same too. I still have to drag myself out of bed in the morning, and there are still other things that catch my attention, and replace things. Caught up in a new daily grind I quickly lose my focus, and my eyes turn inward, instead of staying outward.
If we continually think that we will start 'growing' once we get to a certain age, or arrive at a particular milestone, or move to a different part of the globe, we are sadly mistaken. And we are only wasting time. Life is a constant battle, and a daily struggle....no matter where you live. And He's just the same.

 

"....life is very much like climbing a hill of ice. You cannot slide up. You have to cut every step with an axe. Only with incessant labor in cutting an chipping can you make any progress. If you want to know how to backslide, leave off going forward. Cease going upward and you will go downward of necessity. You can never stand still." C.S.

The Iron Dome

 

 

They call it the Iron Dome. Supposedly technology that can intercept and destroy rockets that are headed for populated areas. It was created in 2011 and while 90% of rockets never do the damage they were meant to, the system is not 100% bullet proof.

You may be thinking "So what? I didn't ask for a history lesson."

 

 

It was 9:30pm (2:30 back home) , and I was tired. It had been a good long day and tomorrow would be here before too long. I had been waiting all evening for the sun to go down so I could crawl in bed. And I knew the traffic noises, from down on the street would soon lull me to sleep.

 

Traffic down on the street started to dwindle, and the night was peaceful...and normal. I was in that in between state of sleep. Not fully awake but not quite sleeping either. DeLora had just turned the light out. And then a siren went. I layed still for a little bit waiting for the siren to fade into the distance as the 'ambulance' drove down the street. And then I jolted awake. Wide awake! This wasn't your normal siren. No this was the Air Raid siren.

DeLora and I looked at each other. What are we supposed to do?!

Wayne and Marie came into the Living Room and confirmed what was already going through our heads. Wayne had got an alert on his phone. Rockets were being shot from Gaza and were headed our way. Not knowing what to do, we stood and watched out the window. The siren blared for what felt like forever. Although it was probably only 5 minutes. After the siren stopped was when we the real excitement started. In the dark, quiet of the night we saw the Iron Dome in action. We silently watched as one rocket after another was intercepted, and a boom was heard as it exploded mid air.

Public bomb shelters were opened in Tel Aviv, and Jerusalem. We saw 10+ rockets intercepted over what was probably Tel Aviv. This morning in the news it said two rockets had landed outside of Jerusalem. Thankfully that's as close as it got.

But watching the rockets last night really brought all the unrest close to home. First it was the 3 Jewish teens that had been kidnapped and murdered. Then the Palestinian teen was murdered in what's been called a revenge killing. Their have been riots every since Friday when the funeral for the Palestinian took place. And Monday over 100 rockets were launched from Gaza but never got close to Jerusalem...at least not close enough to put off the siren. And then last night were more rockets.

"So this is what 'unrest' in the Middle East is like." I thought to myself as we watched out the window. After it stopped DeLora looked at me and said, "I've never been in the middle of a war zone!!!"

I stood there last night confidently, and at peace as I watched. What I was watching was totally and fully out of my control...but not out of His. And I felt safe. I felt safer then I have at home sometimes. Why? Because nothing has ever taken Him by surprise...and nothing ever will. And because the safest place to be is in the center of His will.

Life continues to go on. And life is a gift. And it's also exciting...if your living in Jerusalem.

Finding a Balance

So.....It sounds like my last post created quite the storm! This is part of the e-mail mom sent me...

 

"What a poignant blog post. People kept coming up to me last night at Business Mtg.
wanting to give me a hug for my daughter because her blog post made them
cry, and I hadn't read it yet and wasn't exactly sure what you said..."

 

Honestly, I sat there and laughed....maybe I came across a little too strong. I mean it certainly wouldn't be the first time. So just to let you all know I"M NOT DYING!!! At the same time I'm not looking to take back anything that was said in the last post. Because every square inch of it was true. But that was one evening. The isolated feeling is not a 24/7, on going gloom. It has it's moments when it can feel overwhelming, but there is plenty of joy and things to be grateful for in the day to day events. It's all part of what is called 'culture shock'. It has it's moments. But they are only moments.

So (sorry Dad), I'm not pining to come home on the next plane back to the States. I wouldn't say that I'm homesick, and sitting around wondering if the clouds will ever lift! I just occasionally suffer from culture shock!

 

Alright. Enough of that. On to the weekend. This has definitely been a July 4th weekend to remember. Not necessarily because the holiday, more so because of how different it was from all the other years. This is the first year that I can remember not going to the Cabin with the Martin side of the family! Horrors! I know, it's a dreadful thing! It's always been a highlight of the summer...but not this year. While my family was making there way to the cabin, we were staying close to home because the funeral for the Palestinian teen was taking place. A number of streets were blocked off due to riots and unrest, part of the railway was shut down, as well as the Temple Mount. Despite the horrific images on the news we haven't come close to seeing anything of the sort, even though its very close.

 

Some little kiddos got there first lesson in jump roping!

 

Daddy showing Princess how to jump!

Friday evening we went for a walk and saw a pretty nice view.

You can just so see the Dome of the Rock, and then the mountain on the right would be where the Mount of Olives is.

 

Saturday was relaxing, and again we didn't go far.

Sunday morning I learned that the 'youth group' is going hiking for the morning. DeLora and I have been able to get to know four other youth that are here. The girl is a native here, and then two of the guys are from the states and the other one is from Romania.

 

Both of us girls were pretty excited about the opportunity to do something with everyone and get to know them a little better. I thought hiking would be you know......well anyway I wasn't prepared for what the day would hold. At first it was pretty relaxing walking around, finding caves.

But then again we are in Jerusalem, where everything goes either up or down. The first half of our hike was mostly down hill, not a whole lot of climbing. And although we were in direct sunlight most of the time there was a nice breeze going so it wasn't totally unbearable.

And then we came to this.......

It felt like you were climbing up the face of a cliff! 300+ steps straight up! I don't remember ever pushing myself that hard while hiking, or being so drenched with sweat. I thought it was kind of funny. We go to hang out with these people we don't really know all that well. And instead of having a game night, or going to a coffee shop or something, we sweat it out together in the wilderness of Israel! What we thought would only be a morning hike, ended up being about a 6 hour intense hike. DeLora and I were both exhausted and sore when we got home. I would love to do it again sometime now that I know what to expect, and what exactly I would be getting myself into!

So there's my weekend...and it was fun, a lot of fun :)!

Journal Entry: July 1, Isolation

       

 It's funny how you can feel isolated in the middle of a bustling city, But even more so when you can't speak the language. Isolation. Such a cold word. But an even colder feeling.
        I sat on a park bench with a truly spectacular view in front of me. But its hard to enjoy such a view when your eyes are full of tears. So I poured out my heart to the only one who understood the language of my soul. Language. It's a huge, daunting mountain. Where does one even begin? And how? A couple people occasionally passed by, and all their conversations were either in Hebrew, or some other foreign tongue. And with every person the hopeless feeling grew. Followed by more prayer for grace and strength.

        I saw black shoes, and the end of a long black coat walk past. And then stop. I wiped my eyes and looked up. Looking back at me was a young Orthodox Jewish man.
        "Hello" he said....almost quietly.
        "Hello" I returned, as courteously as I could.
        "How are you doing?" He asked.
        "Fine, thank you." Inwardly I thought to myself, Who are you? and what do you think? Your looking at a girl scribbling in her journal, with a tear stained face! He walked over and sat down beside me, as I pulled my still open journal closer to me. I was ready for my heart to start pounding with fear, and my mind to be filled with questions as to what he was up to, or wanted. But they never came.
        "Is this your first time in Israel?"
        "Yes."
        "And how do you like it?"
        "It's okay." I tried to be as convincing as possible.
        "What's not okay about it?"
        I looked out over the valley and smiled weakly. "Well it's a little hard to get around if you don't understand Hebrew!"
        "Mmh...yes, but if that's the only thing that's wrong, I'd say your having a pretty good time!" He paused as I let that sink in. Instantly I knew he was right. It was like God had allowed me to have my cry, and was now telling me, it's time to move on. No your situation is not ideal, but you have  lot to be grateful for, get back on your feet.
        We talked for probably 10 min. before I decided it was time to go. That man was a God-send. I have never before been comfortable with strangers coming up and talking to me, especially guys.  But I was completely comfortable, an had peace while I was talking to him. As I walked away I wasn't sure what to think. I felt strangely comfortable and relaxed. I never looked back as I walked away. Kinda wish I would have.
        Whether God sent an angel, or just a plain Israeli Jew to speak English to me, I left encouraged, and convinced that God had in a small way heard and answered my cry.

Scenery

 

These pictures were taken from a park that I went to last evening. Not sure if you can see or not but straight ahead there is a wall that goes along the top of the mountain. That wall is what divides Jerusalem from the West Bank. Up the mountain to the left would be the Old City, and on the right a couple blocks would be were we are staying.

 

 

 

After the heat wave we had last weekend this 80's business feels pretty nice :)!