A full and happy life......

Some days I am more aware than others of how blessed I am.  Today was a great day and I feel so content with my life.  I recently made friends with two very interesting ladies; one is Mahnin, a Burmese refugee who owns a small Burmese restaurant downtown and the other is Pimpa, an immigrant from Thailand. 

A few days ago I was at Mahnin's restaurant for lunch with my daughter.  As we were finishing lunch, my daughter remembered that she had left her keys at her house just a few blocks away so she went back to get them.  While she was gone, Mahnin, finding herself with a short break from cooking, came over to my table to say hi.  Pimpa said to her, "Oh!  You should see her daughter!  She very beautiful!!"
Mahnin:  "Well, she herself is very beautiful."
Pimpa:  "Yes.  But her daughter much more beautiful!!"

(Side note:  she's right, of course   but I didn't think it needed to be said out loud!)

After which Mahnin went off on some long tangent in Thai and when she was finished, Pimpa kindly translated for me.

Pimpa:  "She said you beautiful; but if you wear little makeup, you much more beautiful.  You face very plain.  You need wear some eye make-up and blush."

(Again..... not necessary to voice this out loud.)

I felt they were trying to be friendly and complimentary, so I smiled and thanked them.  In fact, I got so carried away, I ended up inviting them over for lunch on Tuesday.  Which is today.  Which takes me back to why I feel so happy.

I love to cook.  Mahnin is an excellent cook and as I've mentioned, she owns and operates a restaurant.  She makes the most amazingly delicious noodle dishes, rice dishes, and soups.  She is from Burma but lived for 10 years in Thailand so her restaurant serves food from both of those countries.  I wanted to cook something she would enjoy but it was a bit tricky since almost everything I thought of making, she can make way better than I.

I finally decided on spicy sweet potato soup (my niece's Greek boyfriend once declared this soup "amazing" and said it was the best thing he had ever put in his mouth), teriyaki salmon, spicy peanut noodle salad, and coconut creme brulee (my son's all time favorite dessert.)  Although some things, like the dressing for the salad and the dessert, I made yesterday, I still had to get started early this morning so that everything would be ready by noon, their expected time of arrival.

I marinated the salmon, julienned the carrots and daikon for the salad, pan fried the tofu, boiled the soba noodles, made the sweet potato soup, set the table, lit candles throughout the house....  Then, 15 minutes before noon, my phone rang.  It was Pimpa calling to say her husband had locked himself out of his car and she had to run out to Glenbrook area to pick him up and take him home.  They were going to be late....

table all set and awaiting guests

Actually, this turned out fine because it gave me time to sit and relax a bit before they showed up.  Which they finally did at about 1:00.

Pimpa

Mahnin

Mahnin and Pimpa

Pimpa and Mahnin made all the appropriate comments about the food and ate until they were about to burst.  Afterwards, we sat in the living room and ate dessert.  Pimpa shared an amazing story with me about how an article I'd written about Mahnin's restaurant for an online magazine, caused an old boyfriend she hadn't heard from in over 25 years to track her down.  They have reconnected as friends and she says it's all because of me!  We talked about Thailand and Burma, and life in Fort Wayne.  We talked about husbands and children and traveling to other countries.  We talked about work and school and cooking.  We shared stories and recipes.  (Made much more interesting by the fact that Mahnin's English is very limited.)  We had such a nice time!

After they left, I sat in my living room with Ally (our dog) and Fritz (our cat) and just enjoyed my cozy home and the positive energy I felt lingering in the room.  Having just celebrated Thanksgiving, I'm reminded of how thankful I am for all of my blessings: family, friends, food, my warm house in winter and my cool house in summer, the amazing country I live in, mountains, oceans, farmland, lakes, forests, books, music, pistachios, squirrels, argyle socks, hot bubble baths, diversity, ideas, freedom and the standard of living I've been able to enjoy during my lifetime.  May I never forget!!!





Fritz enjoying the fire

 

Remembering my friend......

Mark trying out a fried scorpion during a trip to China

I'm a pretty ordinary person.  I live an ordinary life and do ordinary things.  In spite of my boring claim to all things ordinary, there have been a few people in my life who believe me to be extraordinary in some regard.  Because their opinion of me is, for one reason or another, distorted, I'm careful not to say or do anything that might cause them to see me for the ordinary person I really am.  It's a great feeling to know that someone sees something in you worthy of admiration.

My friend and teacher, Mark, was one of those people.  I'm not sure why, but he thought I was a much better person than I really am.  He made me feel good about myself.  Today I received the sad news that he passed away.  And suddenly, with one less person thinking I'm special, I'm back to feeling ordinary.....

Mark was my music history professor.  I was terrified my first day in his class because I'd heard from other students that he was a miserable SOB and his class was very hard.  But I found this not to be true.  Mark brought humor and wit to his classroom; his knowledge of his field was extensive and his enthusiasm for his subject was infectious.  He was one of the best professors I've ever had; he sparked my curiosity about many things, leading me to pursue different courses of study outside the classroom, and he inspired me musically leading me to branch out into areas, such as recorder and harpsichord, that I previously had had no interest in.  He was the only one of my professors to attend my senior recital who wasn't required, as a member of my jury, to be there.

He was my professor for only two years, but he was my friend for almost 20!  Besides music, Mark and I shared a love of travel and a passion for food.  I loved sharing conversations with him about Indian vegetarian cuisine, or Moroccan cuisine (his personal favorite).  He had a wicked wit and a delightfully sarcastic sense of humor that I loved!  I never had a conversation with him or an email from him that didn't make me laugh (or at least chuckle!)

I relied on Mark for all sorts of information because it seemed there was almost nothing he didn't know something about!  When I wanted to know which was the best recording of early Italian madrigals, I called Mark.  When I wanted to know how to make preserved lemons, I asked Mark.  When I wondered if it was true that the Buddha's last words to his disciples were, "Work out your own salvation with diligence," I asked Mark.  He was a treasure trove of information, both useful and useless; a true "Modern Major General" in every sense of the word!

Mark introduced me to authors I'd never read, music I'd never heard, ideas I'd never thought of, food I'd never tasted.  But the thing I'm going to miss most with his passing is having someone to sound my philosophical ideas off of.  He was quite opinionated, but at the same time, open to discussion.  He stimulated me towards new ways of thinking and introduced ideas that were new to me. 

I am going to miss him in a million different ways!

A matter of conscience......

I like to tell myself that if I were rich, nobody but my closest friends would know.  You wouldn't be able to tell I was rich by the clothes I wore, or the car I drove, or the house I lived in.  I like to think that none of these things would change much at all.  I already have all the clothes I need; my car does a fine job of getting me from here to there (which is really the only function of a car); and my house has served me just fine for over 10 years (although.... I might consider adding on a garage!)

I like to tell myself that if I were rich, the only thing that would change would be the lives people around me in need.  I would be able to help Dadou get his teeth attended to so he didn't have to suffer with tooth pain every day; I would help Mahnin pay off the debt she owes so that she could run her business and feed her family without having to work 7 days a week just to keep her nose above water; I would pay the bail to get Eli out of prison so this young, falsely accused 14-year old wouldn't have to set in a Haitian prison with adult men who abuse him daily; I would help fund my sister's school for under-privileged, high-achieving young people so it wouldn't have to close its doors; I would send money for food down to the retirement home in Marfranc so its elderly residents wouldn't have to go to bed with the pang of hunger gnawing at their insides; I would pay school tuition for several of my young friends in Haiti so they could get an education instead of wander the streets during the day.  And there are lots of other things I would do too...... but what's the point in listing them all here? 

I may not be "rich" but I certainly have more than I need and can at least do one or two small things.  I'm going to make a conscious effort to be aware of what I can do for others.  Maybe, if I can't give money, I can give time? 

Yes, I think I need to be about the business of helping my fellow human-beings whenever I can......