Fusion

Fusion is when two things are mixed together to create a new thing.   I recently attended a Mexican-Chinese fusion restaurant.  It was delicious.

While eating at the fusion restaurant, I began to ponder the word of God.

John 10:10 "I have come that they may have abundant life"
John 16:33 "In this life you will have trouble.

Two conflicting ideas are mixed together. (a fusion if you will).  😉

When I think of abundance I think of: blessing, health, wealth, protection, love, life filled with purpose.  I think everyone wants those things.  I want the blessings of God.   However, God also promises that we will have trouble.   We live in a fallen world, there will be sin, disappointments, heartbreak.


How do we reconcile the disappointments in life when we desire the abundance?

In the movie inside out, the main character Joy is very similar to us humans.  She wants to be happy all of the time.  She wants all the good things that come from life and tries her best to block sadness.  However, at the end of the movie she realizes :

 "The only way to appreciate joy is to experience sadness."

God uses trouble, heartbreak, and sadness to grow us.   We learn more about his character, his compassion, his love.   During our darkest moments we become more dedicated to God.   We learn how to be fulfilled by his love.  We learn how to persevere.

God uses those difficult experiences to draw us closer to him.

"Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds.  Because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance.  Let perseverance finish it's work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything." ~James 1:2-4

~Sunny :D

It feels like I am breathing fresh air!

In the book of Genesis it tells the Story of Joseph.   Joseph was a beloved son of Jacob.  His brothers sold him into slavery and he eventually ended up in Jail.   After he was released from Jail he became the right hand man for Pharaoh.  

I feel like Joseph.  I was not released from prison, but I feel like my position at work has changed drastically with one change.

We got a new principal.

My last principal played favorites and I was not one of them.  There were back-handed compliments, harsh evaluations, and unreasonable demands placed on me.   I know of teachers who advanced their own personal agendas at my expense.   I felt oppressed and unappreciated but stayed because I had hope it would eventually get better.

My new principal has only known me a week but already loves me.  I have gone from the person everyone avoided to the one everyone wants to be friends with.  The power structure has changed and I am at the top.    My principal has a mentor who happened to work with me at another school several years ago.  The mentor was at one of our meetings and she gave me a hug when she saw me.  Then she said "This teacher is fabulous!  You are lucky to have this one!"  in front of the whole staff~ including teachers who previously made my life difficult. 😏

It was satisfying to see all the jaws drop.

Many of the parents in the school have also been singing my praises to the principal during a recent PTA meeting.  Some of the nice comments made me blush. 😊

After several years of being mistreated, it feels good to be recognized for my accomplishments.   I have planted seeds and I am finally able to reap what has been sown.

Back to the story of Joseph.   He was able to teach his brothers a lesson and he used his position for good.    I am very excited about my upcoming school year and yet I want to be humble.  I want to use this position to bring encouragement to my colleagues.  I don't want to my newfound favor to manipulate situations to get my way, at the expense of another.  I want to honor God with my actions.

I can't stop smiling.   I am so happy.    It truly feels like I am breathing fresh air! 😁

~Sunny :D

Lava (From "Lava" (Official Lyric Video))

Himalayan Salt Lamps

In my quest to become less anxious and find more peace I decided to purchase a Himalayan Salt Lamp.  I researched that they improve sleep, and have a calming effect.   Apparently they have negative ions and naturally clean the air of allergies and such.    I did some research and found out that many chain stores (Target, Walmart, etc.) have "fake" salt lamps which look pretty but do not have the same positive benefits of a real salt lamp made from real Himalayan Salt.

If I was going to purchase a Salt Lamp, I wanted to make sure it was going to give me all of the positive benefits possible.   In Phoenix, there is a store that only sells Himalayan Salt Items.  (Mostly lamps, but also bath salts, table salts and decorations.)

The women who owned the shop explained that her and her husband purchase huge blocks of rock salt from mines in Pakistan and hand carve each lamp before selling them in the shop.    She has something called "The Salt Room" which is a small room full of salt lamps.  Even the floor was made out of the salt rock.  Purchasing the Salt Lamp ended up being an experience!   The women was busy with another customer when I arrived so I looked around for a few minutes and sat in The Salt Room.  It was a very warm room but at the same time I felt very relaxed surrounded by the soft glow.  Here are some pictures of the shop.

           

                  Many lamps to choose from                                

After looking around the shop several times I settled on a small lamp that had more of a pink glow to it.  I thought it was prettier and would look better in my bedroom.  (pictured below)   I turn on the lamp every night around 7:00PM.   That is when I go into my bedroom to read my bible, pray, update my journal and mediate. I enjoy having it it my room.  I am not entirely sure if it helps with anxiety, but I do feel more calm when I meditate with it on.

~Sunny :D

Awake at 2AM

A few nights ago I found myself awake at 2AM filled with regret over decisions I made 20 years ago. I can't change the past.   I found myself wrestling with myself: Did I make the right choices?  Would my life be better or worse if I would have chosen a different path?

What if I married my college sweetheart from? (one of my biggest regrets 😢)
Maybe I should had chosen a different career?
What if I would have decided to do peace corps?
Why didn't I backpack across Europe?

How would my life be different if I took a different path?

Honestly, I have no idea.  I sometimes feel like life is a big game of "Choose your own Adventure."   I was finding myself laying in bed at 2AM wondering:  What got me here?

I came to a few realizations and lightbulb moments.   I have had to ask for forgiveness for my mistakes.   I had to take responsibility for my actions and I thanked God for taking care of me even if I completely went the wrong directions on multiple occasions.

I am 40, and I am still young enough to change my life.  I can still backpack across Europe.  I can still travel.  I can still live life.

~Sunny :D

So.... This Happened!?!?!?

I have considered getting a tattoo for several years.  5 years ago I wanted to get a Celtic Cross put onto my lower back (I am Irish).   I could not decide on a design so I did not go through with it.  I did not want to put something on my body permanently unless I was sure it was what I wanted.  I am 40 now and decided it was time to get a tattoo.  I  settled on putting my favorite bible verse on my wrist.

"Can a mother forget the baby at her breast and have no compassion on the child she has borne?  Though she may forget, I will not forget you!  See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands"

~Isaiah 49:15-16

I choose this location for two reason.  1) I wanted it close to the palm of the hand and 2)I wanted to have the ability to cover it with a watch or bracelet.   I think it turned out beautifully.  I was pleasantly surprised it did not hurt as much as I anticipated.    I choose this verse because of how beautiful it is.
"I will not forget you!  I have engraved you on the palms of my hands."  

The tattoo has become a conversation starter.  Some of my closer friends are not entirely sure if it was new or if they just never noticed it.  Only one teacher I work with has noticed my new ink.

My students noticed it on "Meet the Teacher" night.    They decided that having a tattoo officially made me the cool teacher (as if I was not already).   I was nervous about parent opinions about my tattoo~ however, many of the parents of my school have tattoos so I suppose I fit in with them.   One parent complimented the tattoo artist for doing a clean job and ask for my recommendation because she was looking to get inked.

I do not regret getting a tattoo and I don't anticipate that I will.

~Sunny :D

Single in the Summer~ Cleaning

I think there might be something therapeutic about having a clean living environment.   I love coming home from work to a clean apartment.  I am a tidy person and fortunately, so is my roommate.  I do a weekly routine, however twice a year I power-clean my apartment.  I usually do this in the summer and during winter vacation.


Power-Clean
1) I wipe all of the dust and dirt on the blinds.  Wash curtains (if applicable)
2) I use windex to clean every window.
3) I clean around the windows~ in the nooks and crannies of the frame and the corners.
4) I clean out kitchen cabinets, and throw away expired food.
5) I clean the oven, microwave, and refrigerator.  (Both inside and out).
6) Dust ceiling fans, air vents and in locations I can't reach.
7) I spray down and scrub/clean any furniture that is outside of the apartment.
8) I scrub the concrete outside of my apartment and spray it down.
9) clean out and reorganize bedroom and hallway closets.
10) Move furniture and vacuum under it.
11) Get couches and carpet professionally steam cleaned.
12) Scrub floors and baseboards.
13) Clean and organize bedroom drawers.
14) Clean both sides of all of the doors.
15) Donate or sell items that I no longer want but are worth something.
16) Toss items that I no longer want and are not worth anything.
17) This year I scrubbed the grout from between the floor tiles (my previous apartment had wood flooring).

I love to declutter my life.  When I get rid of old items, it makes me feel like some of the negative emotions attached to them are also going away.    Organizing a drawer or closet will make me feel like I am in control of something in my life.    It is like bringing order to the chaos around me.  I feel accomplished that I was able to achieve something.   After the apartment looks perfect, I light a few candles, order some take out and watch some Netflix.

~Sunny :D





 

Single in the Summer~ Cooking

Most summers I learn how to cook food I am unfamiliar with.  I think it is fun to try out new recipes.  One summer I learned how to make 4 different types of cheesecakes.  Another summer I learned how to cook various dishes from Hawaii.  And one summer I learned how to make super cute sugar cookies with fondant.  These skills are not used on a weekly basis, but it helps me to bring things to church pot-lucks and create yummy things for special occasions.

With that being said, I wanted to try out recipes I could make on a weeknight when I needed a break from pasta and hamburgers.  I choose to try to make foods from different cultures to make things more interesting.

My first recipe was something called a Poke Bowl (this ended up being my favorite of the three things I will mention in this blog.).   I LOVE sushi.  However, sushi can become very expensive, very quickly.  I considered learning how to make it, but I was told that it would be very difficult and time consuming process.    A Poke Bowl is kind of like throwing elements of sushi into a bowl.   Here my first attempt at a Poke Bowl.  

Ahi Poke Bowl

YUMMY!!!

 There are many things you can put inside of a Poke Bowl and make it take delicious.   I choose to make mine with Ahi, but they can be made with shrimp, salmon, and even chicken.  some of my other ingredients included:  rice, cucumber, mango, cilantro, avocado and sesame seeds.     This was my first attempt, but not my last.  I plan on making this at least once a week from now on, adding different things into the bowl.

My second recipe was a Chinese dish.  I am not a huge fan of Chinese food, but my roommate orders it all of the time so I wanted to make some and surprise her one night for dinner.

Ginger-Garlic Chicken with Veggies

                                                  Cooking in the pan          Finished product

It was ok.  My roommate told me she loved it, but I felt like it was a little dry.  I am not sure if I will make this again or try a different Chinese recipe next time. 

My third recipe as Indian food.  I choose to make a Chicken curry.    

Chicken Curry

  

                                          Cooking in a pan                   Finished product

The recipe I followed was easy and the curry came out delicious and a little spicy.   I am not sure if I will make this again or not.  Indian food is good once in a while, but is not something I would enjoy eating all of the time. (not to mention the complaints from my roommate on the smell).   However, I do like it more than Chinese food so perhaps I will make it again.  

It was enjoyable to try different recipes.  I only tried 3 new recipes because I didn't want to have a ton of leftovers and I certainly did not want to throw out food.  Summer gets busy with picnics, potlucks and travel.   I do want to keep trying new out new things more often during the school year.  I hope you enjoy my adventures in cooking!

~Sunny :D