Transportation to Church

Here's an Indonesian children's song I recall from time to time:

Pada hari minggu ku turut ayah ke kota

(On Sunday, I follow father to town)

Naik delman istimewa ku duduk di muka

(Riding a special delman, I sit in the front)

Di samping pak kusir yang sedang bekerja

(Next to Mr. Driver who is working)

Mengendali kuda supaya baik jalannya

(Handling the horse to walk well)

Tuk-tik-tak-tik-tuk tik-tak-tik-tuk tik-tak-tik-tuk

(Clip-clop-clip-clop ....)

Tuk-tik-tak-tik-tuk tik-tak suara s'patu kuda 

(Clip-clop-clip-clop ... the sound of horse shoes)

As children, if we were good during the week and got up early enough for church, mom would treat us to a delman ride to church. We'd sing this song and substitute the word "kota" (town) with "gereja" (church).  Dad was the branch president, so he was usually in church hours before we had to be there and seldom rode with us.  I wish there is a picture of my family riding a delman, but there isn't one, so here's one I found on the internet of some random family riding one instead.

On the rare occasion that we did go to church together, the whole family would pile on the family Vespa scooter and make the hour long trek to church.  Again, I don't have a family picture of this, so I had to search online.  We basically look like this family ... Dad driving, me and my brother between his legs and the handlebar, mom sitting side-saddled with my sister straddled between her and dad.  If it rained, we would all be under a giant poncho with only dad's head visible.

Oh the good old days ... these days, you can't go a mile without a seatbelt strapped on in a car that seats seven people and not worry that you'd get fined if you're caught by the cops.

Bananas

I bought a few bananas over the weekend and had one as a mid-morning snack today. No sooner had I finished my banana, my ears and throat started itching … really bad! So, I did some googling … according to the MyAllergyNetwork.com, "If you get an itchy throat or mouth, especially after eating fresh fruit or vegetables AND it gets worse during high-pollen times of year, you may be suffering from oral allergy syndrome." ARGH!!!! I don't want to have to give up this, one of my favorite fruits. I guess this means that I'll have to get my dose of bananas in other things like breads, pies, puddings, pancakes ... just not raw bananas ... not that that's a bad thing ...

On a side note, did I ever tell you about the time my mom and brother fed me two bananas in my sleep? Growing up in Indonesia, there was a variety show our family loved to watch. The only problem was that it came on past my bed time. My parents usually let us (the children) watch it if we napped in the afternoon. On this particular occasion, I didn't take that afternoon nap and I was, of course, really tired that evening. So, I made my family promise that they would wake me in time for the show and went off to bed. I awoke the next morning quite upset that they didn't wake me for the show. I imagine the conversation at breakfast went something like this ...

Inge: Why didn't you wake me? I really wanted to see that show last night. :(
Mom: You slept so soundly, we just didn't have the heart to wake you ... by the way, what did you dream about last night?
Inge: I had a dream that I was a monkey ... and I was in the jungle ... and I found a bunch of sweet bananas in the trees ... How did you know I had a dream?
Family: HAHAHA!!! HAHAHA!!!
Inge: What? What's going on?
Mom: Did monkey eat some bananas?
Inge: Yeah … why?
Harry: Mom and I came in to wake you and you were mumbling about bananas and wanting some, so we got you two bananas and fed it to you in your sleep.

Youthful Indiscretions

Most people rebelled when they were teenagers. With me, the my rebelling was done between the age of 5 and 7. I think the Catholic school I attended was a bad influence on me (just kidding).

Hot Drinks. The thing I missed the most when my parents joined the LDS faith was sweet tea the way my aunts used to make them. Within a year after they were baptized, Dad became the Branch President and Mom, the Relief Society President. I got a box of tea from the store and hid it in our food pantry. I would make myself a nice cup of sweet tea and ahhh ... until Mom caught me and gave me a good scolding and whooping. I also recall a time when I poured myself a cup of black coffee at some family gathering and shared it with a couple of cousins. Boy, that was a nasty gulp to swallow. No wonder people put cream and sugar into coffee. Yuck! However, I do love the smell of coffee ...

Alcohol. When I was about 6-years-old, grandpa used to give me a shot glass of red wine every morning before school. He told me that it was vitamins and that the burning feeling I felt was the vitamins working. One morning I was running late getting ready and told Mom to hurry up so I can get my vitamins from grandpa. She followed me when I went down to the main house and saw me sipping my shot glass worth of red wine. I wasn’t allowed to visit grandpa unsupervised for a few weeks after that. I wonder if I ceased to be mellow after that?

Smoking. When I was about 7-years-old, my brother, a cousin and I took a cigarette from my uncle's pack and tried to smoke it under a bed. We had no idea how to smoke, so we lit the cigarette and blew on it. Couldn’t understand why smoking was such a big deal. I swear we DID NOT inhale! Grandpa smelled the smoke, smacked us from under the bed with his cane, whipped us with his handkerchief and flicked our ears. Triple Owie!

A Grateful Heart

I have been thinking all week about being grateful. I think a grateful person is a happy person. They see how much they are blessed and that gratitude propels them forward. I thought of the people I worked with on my mission in Indonesia. There were families who had very little as far as material wealth, yet they were the happiest people I know. Then there are those who have wealth, but were miserable and lonely. The difference, I observed, is a grateful heart. With that in mind and Thanksgiving fast approaching, I thought I'd list the things I am grateful for (not necessarily in the order of importance).

1. My health. Despite being overweight (or as an Indonesian friend called me, "prosperous") and out of shape (I like to think of it as being fit enough to sit for long periods of time without tiring), I'm in pretty good health. I'm grateful that the string of virus that have caused me to cough for almost two months have brought out kind, concerned friends who offer me tips on how to get over it, cough drops, leftover prescription meds, or just calls to check up on me.

2. My job. It really isn't fair that after 13 years at the same firm, I'm still having a lot fun with my bosses. They treat me well and kindly. I could go and work elsewhere for more money, but they've earned my loyalty.

3. My friends. Too many to name and list their acts of love and kindness towards me. Suffice to say, I am lucky that I have friends I know I can call on if I'm ever in need of the spiritual, emotional, and/or temporal. Despite their snide remarks on my blog or facebook or to my face, I love my friends for making me laugh, feel loved and constantly nourishing my soul and occasionally my body with yummy foods and my mind because most of them are such know-it-alls.

4. Daily tender mercies from God. Whether it be a sunny sky, a beautiful flower I see on the way to work, or dark chocolate left by an anonymous "friend", I'm grateful for the little things that make me happy to be alive.

5. Opportunities to serve. I'm grateful for the families I'm able to help through Sub-for-Santa, they help me realize how blessed I've been throughout the year. I'm grateful for my callings in church as an Employment Specialist and the "Paper Product Coordinator" and I hope I'm doing some good and helping people.

6. My stuff. I really have too much stuff and need to learn to throw things away. My car, Chloe, that I'm constantly scraping. My home, that's overflowing with stuff I need to organize or throw out. My electronic gadgets that keep me occupied and hopefully somewhat organized and in touch with people. My card making stuff that is taking over the dining and living room. Clothes, clothes and more clothes because I'm becoming more and more prosperous and need bigger sizes.

I have much more to be grateful for. I won't bore you with all of them. However, I hope you too will take a quiet moment this week to "Count your blessings/Name them one by one/Count your many blessings/See what God hath done."

Sophia's First Birthday Party

It's Sophia's first birthday party and she's wearing the dress I bought her. Isn't she just so adorable? I want to just eat her up and pinch those chubby cheeks.

Pumpkin a la Sophia

My cousin, Christine, just sent me an update on her little family. Little Sophia was born in New York this past summer shortly before they moved to Houston. They've got a website up and running with all sorts of fun pictures of Sophia, but I must say that this is my favorite.