167/365

"I'm pretty sure I know why it's named Greenville," said the person who lives down the road from Brownsville.

(that said, let it be known that there is a stretch of road between San Benito and Brownsville that is one of my favorite views in the world!)

166/365

The travel itself was an exercise in patience and perseverance. But what delight that the second half of the day completely redeemed the first!

165/365

On Friday evening I had the opportunity to attend the graduation ceremony for Edinbug Theological Seminary. Enjoying these girls sing was the highlight, besides seeing friends graduate, of course!

(please forgive the quality of the video, but enjoy the little guy dancing in the aisle! In honesty, recording was an after-thought. I have never used the video on my camera before this week, so we join the girls mid-song...)

164/365

Meet Bob, an Australian Shepherd mix who lives in Mexico.
(and the variety of those three facts causes me to smile.)

163/365

Rest is not some holy feeling that comes upon us in church. It is a state of calm rising from a heart deeply and firmly established in God.

- Henry Drummond (19th century Scottish evangelist), in Streams in the Desert by LB Cowman, ed. by Jim Reimann

162/365

it was over before I went back out,
but (I heard) it was epic.
the best part- the carnage was rubber pieces and cleaned up in a moment, and the warriors were content.

161/365

a walk in the rain-
flowers are so much prettier than puddles.

160/365

The Breath of God, the Promised One
Filled their mouths and loosed their tongues
To sing the praise of the risen Son
The mighty works that God has done

The breath of God on daughters, sons
He is poured out on old and young
To sing the praise of the risen Son
The mighty works that God has done

O breath of God, O Spirit come
Fill our mouths, And loose our tongues
To sing the praise of the risen son
The mighty works that God has done

In these last days Everyone
Who calls the name Of the Risen Son
They shall be saved by His precious blood
Oh mighty work that God has done!

- "Breath of God," words by Caroline Cobb, from Acts 1 and 2

lyrics from The Blood + The Breath, new music from Caroline Cobb. I adore this disc, the music and the lyrics both rich. A three song sampler is on Noisetrade, but it's fully worth buying the entire work!

Lord's Day Morning

O Maker and Upholder of All Things,

Day and night are thine; they are also mine from thee-
the night to rid me of the cares of the day,
to refresh my weary body,
to renew my natural strength;

the day to summon me to new activities,
to give me opportunity to glorify thee,
to serve my generation,
to acquire knowledge, holiness, eternal life.

But one day above all days is made especially
for thy honor and my improvement;
The sabbath reminds me of thy rest from creation,
of the resurrection of my savior,
of his entering into repose.

Thy house is mine,
but I am unworthy to meet thee there,
and am unfit for spiritual service.
When I enter it I come before thee as a sinner,
condemned by conscience and thy Word.
For I am still in the body and in the wilderness,
ignorant, weak, in danger,
and in need of thine aid.

But encouraged by thy all-sufficient grace
let me go to thy house with a lively hope of meeting thee,
knowing that there thou wilt come to me and give me peace.

My soul is drawn out to thee in longing desires
for thy presence in the sanctuary, at the table,
where all are entertained on a feast of good things;
Let me before the broken elements, emblems of thy dying love,
cry to thee with broken heart for grace and forgiveness.

I long for that blissful communion of thy people
in thy eternal house in the perfect kingdom;
These are they that follow the Lamb;
May I be of their company!

- from Valley of Vision: A Collection of Puritan Prayers and Devotions ed. by Arthur Bennett

159/365

Recipe for tamales 
(as transcribed during the process- thank you Mary!)

Boil meat- keep broth.
Shred meat- using fingers to get it to really small pieces, no chunks.
Simmer shredded meat with portion of reserved broth (add enough broth to keep meat moist).
Add chile- to color the meat a rusty orange color.
Add salt- to taste.
Add garlic powder- to taste.
Add cumin- to taste.
Simmer until spices meld.

Add more reserved broth to masa (mix with hands to blend), a little bit at a time.
Add spices, salt and chile powder, to the color of light orange.
Add lard, giant spoonfuls at a time, until the dough is the consistency of moist playdough.
If wad of dough does not stick to your fingers, it's probably right. There should be a sheen to the dough.
Continue to mash dough through fingers until smooth and the right consistency.
Taste for salty-ness.

Spread masa on cornhusks that have been soaked in water (right side smooth, wrong side rough).
Spread a thin layer, not too thick, not too thin.
Start with a large spoonful in the middle, and push dough downwards and sidewards, to the very edges of the oja.
Be sure to leave a gap of empty husk at the top for folding over.

Place meat down the center of the tamal.
Fold left side to center; fold right side to center;
fold top back and down.

Cook in steamer for 45 minutes to an hour, depending on amount of tamales in the pot and their size.
Steaming is The Best Way to cook tamales.
Load tamales in pot folded side down, in layers, campfire tepee style.
When checking to see if the tamale is cooked, if you see light spots on the bottom of the husk, the tamale is probably not completely cooked.

Tamales can be frozen, before or after cooking. But in reheating, it is best to steam.

note: it is probably best to make tamales with a dear lady who is an expert, who is eager to teach, who is patient and kind with beginners who know absolutely nothing about the process except that they love to eat tamales. You should definitely gather together three other ladies who don't mind running their fingers through meat and masa, who won't be squeamish in the presence of lard, and most importantly, who aren't afraid to laugh at themselves. Tell lots of stories in the process and marvel at how good the Lord is to provide such sweet fellowship. It isn't a bad idea to also have at least nine kids hanging around at the house at same time, playing games, even trying to teach the dog to jump on the trampoline, and who might need peanut butter and jelly sandwiches in the middle of the process and popsicles when no water balloons can be found. Be sure to invite husbands to ooh and aah at how tasty the final product turns out before retreating to watch Saturday afternoon golf on a tiny tv in the next room. Once tamales are bagged and boxed and frozen, and many pots and pans are washed and dried and stored, and all counters are de-masa-ed and de-greased, and the kitchen is in order once again, retreat to chair and ottoman with feet up and wait until dinner is ready- preferably more tamales. And maybe, a salad.

158/365

The storm rolled in and even though it wasn't even dusk, the streetlights came on. The lightning made us blink and the thunder rattled the windows and we sat together and ate ice cream and laughed.