February's family tradition

For as long as I can remember (and longer) my family has raised and butchered our own beef and pork. Maybe it's part of the reason I have a hard time buying it in the store, and generally just don't eat much of it outside of home. Something about knowing where my meat comes from and exactly what's in it is reassuring.

But year after year, this is the family tradition: Butchering Weekend. Knowing that it's expected that if you're family is getting meat, you have a representative present, we gather in the tiny, smoke-filled butcher shop on our farm and attempt not to slice out parts of our fingers along with the fat. But nevertheless, the dialogue and fellowship around the table while performing otherwise not-so-pleasant duties make the weekend something that becomes bearable and possibly even enjoyable at points. And our old-fashioned ways are something that I'm proud to have in my family's tradition. It may not always be this way.

January's PA culture

For Central Pennsylvanian's, this might be one of the most wonderful times of the year (despite the fact that often the weather also seems to make it one of the most treacherous times of the year). Being away for over a year, it's fun to come home to this local tradition:

THE PENNSYLVANIA FARM SHOW

Full of cows and horses and sheep and alpacas, apples and honey and nuts and produce, rodeos and square dancing and tractor pulls and sheep shearing, butter sculptures and local vendors and craft judging and farm equipment. And food. Lots and lots of good food. It happens to be my favorite part of the farm show, which is why it's pretty much the only part I documented. :)  

Fried mozzarella 

 French fries

Fried breaded mushrooms

Apple cider

Turkey BBQ and pulled pork

And some other random things:

Square dancing

Intriguing poultry

Butter sculpture

And for my friends in the Czech Republic, Super Bowl snacks made entirely from mushrooms: cheeseburgers, nachos, french fries and popcorn. All mushrooms.

purpose in the in-between space

Being home for this season is a mix of emotions. Yes, it's nice to be home. But this is an in-between space.  I don't have a schedule. I don't have a job. For the few months I'm home, I don't have a specific purpose. And I am one who values routine and schedules and having something meaningful to do. Something I read recently said that our achievement-oriented society tells us that we are only as valuable as what we produce. Therefore, the more we produce, the more valuable we are. When I produce nothing... well, you get the idea. And while I don't totally buy into that, it's hard not to feel like a bum. I'm torn: part of me says, "You need something to do! Make some kind of contribution to life!" And another part says, "You have value just by being. Take the time to BE, and to listen and rest in God's peace."

Rest and refreshment is good and it's always a journey of being confident in who I am created to be and not because of what I do, but I do like having some sense of purpose. I know I feel better emotionally when I have a sense of accomplishment about something, whether it's earning a day's wages or finishing a project that's been sitting on the shelf for years. I didn't make any New Year's resolutions, but since January is essentially a "new" season of being home and fundraising for a next term in the Czech Republic, and since I don't have any formal obligations at this point, it's a good time to set some goals and projects for myself to make this season purposeful. So to put it out there as a way to keep me accountable, these are a couple of my goals:

• find a part-time job (for something to do and a little bit of income)
• run a half marathon (I am registered for the Love Run in Philly)
• train for a half marathon (yes, these are different goals! The training part is what requires discipline...)
• volunteer a couple of hours each week
• study Czech at least 5 hours a week (I hope to return not forgetting too much, and hopefully with a little more knowledge)
• finish my mom's granny square afghan, if I can find black yarn around the house somewhere...

I'm looking forward to these things. It's a least a start; a way to keep me focused on something while I wait in the in-between. Any other fun ideas for me?  :)

returning

I wasn't sure what to expect in terms of adjusting back to American culture. And granted, I've been home only a week, but these are some things that I've noticed:

• COLD water, as in, water with ice
• workers at stores and attractions who wish you Merry Christmas, have a good evening, etc.
• ethnic diversity other than Caucasians and Asians (presence of many Hispanics and African-Americans – Prague is very diverse, but there actually aren't many Africans)
• huge refrigerators, and large appliances in general
• winter is a lot more brown in PA
• it's easy to get back into driving everywhere and I definitely don't walk as much
• the ability to communicate clearly with everyone and understand all the conversations around me in public places
• full days of sunshine!
• stars and sunsets
• a load of laundry finished (washed AND dried) in an hour and a quarter
• large vehicles – i.e. trucks and SUVs
• I have plenty of free time

And on that note, I would love to see my US friends! Because I basically have had to plan every day in Prague, if YOU can help me plan my activities in the coming months, I would be super blessed. Contact me and give me a date when we can get together - most likely, it will work. :)


P.S.  a highlight of the last week was meeting this guy for the first time (who is now walking!)

 and spending time with these two, who are growing up so quickly! And seeing the rest of my family, of course. :)

And this card might be one of the best gifts ever

It's the most wonderful time of the year

Christmas market time. I would go every day just for the atmosphere. Except when it's rainy and freezing and thousands of people... but still. I love Christmas markets - wandering around and taking it in. Especially at night.

and being photo-bombed - the guy told us he thought the picture turned out well :)

Langoš - the best market food ever (fried dough topped with garlic, cheese and ketchup)

serving with my hands in dirty dish water

One of my least favorite chores growing up was doing the dishes. I don't know why. Maybe because as a family of 7, the dirty dish pile always seemed monstrous and the task, never-ending. And I never relished sticking my hands in semi-dirty water to clean those dishes. Every Saturday morning Mom wrote out a chore list, and we all had to sign up for 2-3 things to do. I don't know about my siblings, but in my head the goal was to get to that list first so I wasn't stuck with the dishes. I would choose dusting or vacuuming or garden work or even mowing over the dishes any day.

And yet last weekend as I helped with a youth activity at church, I found myself at the sink doing dishes. Not once or twice, but three or four times. I may not dread it as much, but it's still not my favorite activity. And yet, it's something I can do. When my language skills aren't sufficient to communicate, I can do dishes. When I'm not sure how to contribute to the activities around me, I can do dishes. When I feel otherwise unhelpful, I can do dishes. It's not earth-shattering. It's not what will be remembered from the weekend. But it's a way I can serve. Somewhat ironic that I found myself doing that which I used to avoid at all costs, but what else is a servant's life about, really?  Because now I find myself happy to have some way that I can contribute when I often feel like I have little to offer. I can at least do the dishes.

Birthday project part 2

Here it is - the second half of the birthday project! Though I'm not sure I did quite as well at accomplishing this half. :P

• see the Prague Zoo with a child

with 2 students from an English class

half check. Went to the zoo. Does being there with a 20 year old Russian student so excited to walk through the bat cave count (and yes, there were bats flying all around our heads)?

• attend a classical concert

check. Thanks to Jess and Stacy for accompanying me! Unfortunately, I don't remember what was performed...

• visit the grave of a famous composer

check. Czech's own Dvorak, and Beethoven in Vienna

• explain why I'm in Prague in Czech

check... kind of. I was with my Czech teacher and she helped me quite a bit...

• have a meal in a Czech village

check. This one was at a 300 year old tavern and I managed to order garlic soup and bread slathered in lard.

• have a conversation with an older Czech person about his/her life

kind of... depends what you consider older :) Older than me, yes.

• send at least 12 letters/cards (snail mail) to people outside my immediate family (who knows, it could be to you!)

maybe... I'm not so good with the counting ones. I'm not sure I hit 12 since last November, though it may have been close..

• run a race in Prague

This is the map I used. You can't see very well, but the circles with numbers were the points where I needed to check in, using only this map and a compass.

nope. Thanks to my friend, Hanka, I did an orienteering race, but not in Prague, and it was more of a trial race for those new to it. But it was actually a lot of fun and I would do it again if I had a chance!

• give a hug daily

yeah, no. I started well... 

• try one of the kinds of sausages from the supermarket

check. some kind of ham sausage with herbs, I think. It's really hard to guess what they are by the names... This one wasn't too bad.

• extend 12 invitations to a meal/drinks

again, not so good with the counting ones. it's possible it happened.

• buy a comfortable chair for my flat before the end of 2013

check. Got the box home from IKEA on public transportation and managed to put it together myself.

• see my 3 nephews via skype

check. Not for long, but done!

• spend some time with the Roma people

check. It was a short time, but I accompanied a friend who works with a Roma church to her kid's club one evening to help them prepare for an Easter program..

• visit a Christmas market outside of Prague

check. Vienna while on a run for my visa.

• spend a night in a tent or under the stars

nope. Again, bad note to end on! I had a perfect opportunity, but I opted out. It was an overnight trip with Robinson (kid's club from church) and many of the boys choose to sleep outside, but I chickened out and slept inside with the girls.