Heart Hope by Olga

The waitress came to deliver the lunch to our table with a Chicken Caesar Salad in one hand and a curry wrap in the other. She stated that if she was going to be stereotypical she would make the assumption that the salad was for the female at the table. My husband and I both quickly proceeded to tell her that she would be wrong. I had the wrap; he had the salad. Aren’t we like that in many areas of our life—we make assumptions about people based on our limited knowledge of who they seem to be. A couple of examples might include: We suppose that the couple who can’t seem to keep their hands off of each other must be happily married, when behind closed doors they may be yelling and throwing things at each other. We believe that the kid with the tattoos and piercings must be a rebellious teenager and could never be a Christian, but she may be the very one who spends her lunch hour reading her Bible and talking to her classmates about Jesus. We imagine that the well dressed lady who ...

1 c canola oil 1 ¾ c sugar ½ T vanilla 1/3 c molasses 2 eggs 1 c grated zucchini 2 ¼ c flour 1 t baking soda 1 T cinnamon ½ t nutmeg 1 c raisins and or chopped walnuts (optional) Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease 9” bread pan. Mix together the oil, sugar, vanilla, molasses and eggs. Add the grated zucchini to the molasses mixture and mix. Add the remaining ingredients and mix thoroughly for 2 minutes. Pour the batter evenly into the prepared pan. I suggest only filling it ½ full at high altitude or it may overflow the sides. Bake 55-60 minutes or an inserted knife comes out clean. www.hearthope.org

US Pro Cycling Challenge Excitement was in the air…the crowds had gathered …the stage was set…the vendors were out in full force…the weather was cooperating…the line up was already in position…the countdown of five, four, three, two, one…and then the horn and the riders began pedaling.   The Avon to Steamboat segment of the 2011 US Pro Cycling Challenge was off and riding.  With celebrity athletes from all over the world and the big names from the Tour de France Avon was definitely a buzz. The cameras were flashing in hopes of getting a photo of someone important in the racing world even though you would probably never be able to meet them in person. Security had anticipated 17,000 people to be at the starting gate for the race and up to 100,000 people to view some portion of the competition that day. With all of the hubbub for a bunch of racers, of course I began thinking... What the response would be if it were announced that Jesus was going to be in Avon? Would t...

Volleyball by the Lake It was a beautiful afternoon for all kinds of outdoors activities--bike riding, hiking, playing sand volleyball. The only problem was that as I rode past the volleyball court the game was at a standstill. Three of the players were standing in anticipation of playing the game while the fourth was talking on his cell phone.  I wondered what might be so important that one player would stop the game to talk on his cell phone. Was the conversation about his evening plans? Was it a family emergency? Was his wife calling to tell him to stop at the grocery store on the way home? Or was it just that the young man thought he was so important that he could just make everyone else wait while he talked on the phone? Since Bible study that morning had been about waiting to hear from God, I started thinking about how rude it seemed that one person was requiring three other people to wait on his selfishness. (BTW it apparently was not an emergency because on my retu...

With basil being plentiful this time of year, I made a big batch of pesto to freeze. It is delicious on pasta, on sandwiches, burgers, even on eggs, so make some to enjoy when the basil season is over.  2 cups packed fresh basil leaves 2 cloves garlic 1/4 cup pine nuts 2/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil, divided Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese Combine the basil, garlic, and pine nuts in a food processor and pulse until coarsely chopped. Add 1/2 cup of the oil and process until fully incorporated and smooth. Season with salt and pepper. If using immediately, add all the remaining oil and pulse until smooth. Transfer the pesto to a large serving bowl and mix in the cheese. If freezing, transfer to an air-tight container and drizzle remaining oil over the top. Freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw and stir in cheese.  www.hearthope.org

Two squares of toilet paper—who would leave only two squares of toilet paper on the roll without replacing it? That was my thought as I realized I was stuck with so little toilet paper. At first I had the notion that I should be upset and angry until the realization set in that I could have been the guilty party and then I backed off of my irritation and began to find humor in it. I have always questioned why someone would put 3 crackers back in the pantry. Or what about a handful of Tostitos crumbs? And there is also the single spoonful of ice cream. Why doesn’t the culprit just eat the few morsels instead of carefully putting it back for someone else to finish off? Or if they were not worth saving why didn’t they just throw them away? These things may be annoyances that can actually frustrate us and even ruin out day…if we let it. We have an alternative—we can either let it consume our thoughts or we can laugh it off and realize that we are not perfect either. In fact our faults mi...

One of my most vivid childhood memories of growing up in Mississippi in the 60s is sitting in church on a Sunday morning waiting for the service to begin. All of a sudden there was a ruckus just to my left. As I looked over to see what was going on I found there was a group of men from the church on one side of the swinging door pushing against it. As the door swung back and forth it became evident that there was a family of Blacks on the other side of the door trying to enter the sanctuary. In my little pre-teen mind I questioned, “Why won’t the men let the people come to church? This is God’s house and everyone should be allowed to come in and worship.”  Don’t you find it interesting that a young girl could have had more wisdom than the grown men who were supposedly the leaders of the church?  Those men were not living according to the teachings of Christ such as love, kindness, compassion, just as many people today don’t either. They choose to make up their own rules and ...

In keeping with the theme of The Help this week, I have posted my easy recipe for Caramel Icing. It is delicious even on a box cake.  1/2 c. butter 1 c. brown sugar 1/4 c. milk About 2 c. sifted powdered sugar 1 tsp. vanilla Melt butter in saucepan, stir in brown sugar. Cook and stir over low heat 2 minutes. Add milk, continue stirring until boiling. Remove from heat. Cool to lukewarm. Put into small mixer bowl, add sugar and vanilla while beating on medium speed, then beat on low speed for one minute. www.hearthope.org

I remember Brent’s Drugstore with the nickel cokes and egg and olive sandwiches and I remember the Mayflower on a Friday night. I also remember the tension of the times. The movie The Help exposed Mississippi as it was in some but not all homes. There are good people and bad people everywhere, but it is difficult for me to imagine that some people can treat other people with such hatred as some of the characters portrayed. Why do they think that they are better than another person? What has given them the attitude that they can say and do ugly things to someone else? How can someone call themselves a Christian and have no love and compassion for others? We are all created equal—no better, no worse. In the movie The Help one ringleader, Hilly, was able to influence her friends to make poor choices and to hurt loving, caring people who served them well.  I would hope that there are no longer people in this world like her, but I know I would be wrong. On the other hand, Sk...

My beautiful Sally on the day of my wedding I went to see The Help last night, so you will be reading about it on my blog for the next couple of days. It brought back memories—some good and some not so good. I grew up in Jackson, Mississippi in the exact time period of the book/movie. Sally was our “help.”  She was exactly the same age as my mother and they were very close…in fact today my mother admitted that they were like sisters. They laughed together, they cried together and they shared their faith together through their long conversations.  Sally was a vital part of our family and I believe that I would have been an entirely different person if she had not been a part of my life. She came to work for my family in December of 1951 just a few days after my sister Ginny was born. She was there when I was born. She was there when I started kindergarten. She cried with us when my grandmother died. She was present during my month long hospital stay. She went with me t...

I have a confession to make. The thing I am going to tell you can be very difficult to admit in certain situations because you never know how people will react. Although it is something that I am proud of, it is not well received by all people, or in every circumstance. Having grown up in the Deep South, it was a commonly accepted and even expected thing, but as I have moved to different places I have found it can be viewed as offensive and even unacceptable. You see I am a Christian—Jesus Christ has saved me from the penalty of my sins. Our country that was founded on Christian principles has been so afraid that we are going to offend people who are of other cultures and other faiths that I have been made to feel like there is something wrong with my faith. When cities prohibit nativity scenes in the town square at Christmas or the 10 commandments cannot be displayed in court of law or when teachers in some cities cannot wear crosses in the classroom, I feel discriminated against....