Live a Life That Matters
June 29th, 2010 § Leave a Comment
I read this poem on The Old Painted Cottage today. It struck a chord in me, so I thought I’d share it.
What Will Matter
By Michael Josephson
Ready or not, some day it will all come to an end.
There will be no more sunrises, no days, no hours, or minutes.
All the things you collected, whether treasured or forgotten will pass on to someone else.
Your wealth, fame and temporal power will shrivel to irrelevant.
It will not matter what you owned or what you were owed.
Your grudges, resentments, frustrations, and jealousies will finally disappear.
So, too, your hopes, ambitions, plans, and to-do lists will all expire.
The wins and losses that once seemed so important will fade away.
It won’t matter where you come from, or on what side of the tracks you lived.
It won’t matter whether you are beautiful or brilliant.
Your gender, skin color, ethnicity will be irrelevant.
So, what will matter?
How will the value of your days be measured?
What will matter is not what you bought, but what you built. Not what you got, but what you gave.
What will matter is not your success, but your significance.
What will matter is not what you learned, but what you taught.
What will matter is every act of integrity, compassion, courage and sacrifice that enriched, empowered or encouraged others to emulate your example.
What will matter is not your competence, but your character.
What will matter is not how many people knew you, but how many will feel a lasting loss when you’re gone.
What will matter is not your memories, but the memories of those who loved you.
What will matter is how long you will be remembered, by whom and for what.
Living a life that matters doesn’t happen by accident. It’s not a matter of circumstance but of choice.
Choose to live a life that matters.
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To counteract the melancholy you may be experiencing, head on over to Finslippy. If you don’t laugh over that post–sorry to be the one to tell you–something is just wrong with you.
Mexican Mix-in Bowl
June 28th, 2010 § Leave a Comment
As I mentioned in the previous post, I had two sick boys on my hands last night. Neither of whom was in the mood to eat dinner. But, dagnabit, I was in the mood for dinner and I had a hankering for a little Mexican! (No, not you Miguel! Food! A little Mexican FOOD!) And if there’s one thing I go out of my way to do, it’s satisfy my hankerings. I considered delivery or take out, but then I started looking through the kitchen and found that I had the fixings for a Mexican mix-in bowl, aka “burrito bowl” or a “naked burrito.” Just the guts, hold the skin. (That reminds me of Dexter. I really miss that show. My husband won’t let me watch next season. He says it’s “evil.”) So, anyway, I cooked up some brown rice, heated up some jarred salsa and a combination of chickpeas and black beans, threw it all in a bowl and topped it with a few dollops of plain yogurt and some diced avocado. I just realized that I had corn in the freezer that I could’ve added, too. That would’ve been good. Coulda, woulda, shoulda. Of course chicken or beef could be added, as well as some shredded cheese, lettuce…whatever floats your barca.
Mexican Mix-in Bowl
Serves 2, more or less
1 cup brown rice
1 cup bean of your choice (black, chickpeas, kidney, or a combination), drained and rinsed.
1/2 jar salsa (or make your own)
1/2 cup frozen organic corn kernels, defrosted
2 tablespoons plain yogurt (or sour cream)
1/2 avocado, diced
1. Cook rice according to package directions.
2. When there’s 10 or so minutes left until the rice is done, heat the beans, corn, and salsa in a skillet, stirring occasionally until hot.
3. When rice is done, place some in a bowl and top with bean mixture, yogurt, and avocado. Mix it up and dig in. Or, if you have tortillas, you could wrap it all up to make one big honkin’ burrito.
It hit the spot! All that was missing was a margarita–believe me, after spending 4 days and nights with a sick 2 1/2 year old, my soul is crying out for a margarita. My poor little buddy. Keep your fingers crossed that he feels better tomorrow. I hope my big buddy is feeling better, too.
“If You Like Chana Masala…
June 27th, 2010 § 2 Comments
…and getting caught in the rain…” I sing that song every single time I make this Indian dish. Weird Al watch your back. Aahh, well, I have two sick and cranky boys in the house, so this is going to be quick. I made this Chana Masala dish last week (and a million times before that), but forgot to take a picture of it. (My blogging cred is going downhill so fast it’s scary! ) This recipe is from the October 2000 issue of Martha Stewart Living. It’s easy, pleasantly spicy, and all you need is some brown rice (and maybe a small green salad) to make it a meal.
CHANA MASALA
Serves 4
Garam masala, a blend of dry-roasted spices, can be found in the international section of most large supermarkets.
1 tablespoon vegetable oil (I always use olive oil)
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
2 small onions, finely diced (1 1/2 cups) [Here Gordon Ramsay demos how to properly chop an onion]
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 1/2 cups crushed canned tomatoes
2 15 oz. cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1/2 jalapeno pepper, seeded and very finely diced
1 teaspoon garam masala
1 teaspoon coarse salt
1/4 cup freshly chopped cilantro
1. Heat oil in a large skillet over high heat. Add cumin seeds, and cook until they begin to pop, about 30 seconds. Add onions, and cook until they begin to brown. Add garlic, and cook 1 minute more.
2. Add tomatoes, chickpeas, jalapeno, garam masala, and salt. Reduce heat to low, and simmer 10 minutes. Stir in cilantro, and serve.
Keeping with the Indian theme, try your hand at Jamie Oliver’s Mango Lassi:
Ingredients
- 9 fluid ounces (255 milliliters) plain yogurt
- 4 1/2 fluid ounces (130 milliliters) milk
- 4 1/2 fluid ounces (130 milliliters) canned mango pulp or 7 ounces (200 grams) from 3 fresh mango, stoned and sliced
- 4 teaspoons sugar, to taste, or feel free to try salt and cardamom seeds
Directions
Put all the ingredients into a blender and blend for 2 minutes, then pour into individual glasses, and serve. Feel free to try salt and cardamom seeds. The lassi can be kept refrigerated for up to 24 hours
I hope you’re having a good weekend and a great start to the summer!
Go Sow Your Cold Oats
June 16th, 2010 § 2 Comments
Hi! Just thought I’d say hello and tell you that I finally made The Fitnessista’s Breakfast Cookie. I know, I’m like three months behind schedule, but better late than never. I think it’s a great alternative to cooked oatmeal, especially in the warmer months when eating a steaming bowl of oats is about as appealing as wearing a snowsuit in a sauna. Plus, it’s awesome to not have to rush around and make breakfast in the morning. All you have to do is take an extra 10 minutes before bed to prepare the cookie and then take it out of the fridge in the morning. There is definitely something to be said for planning ahead, especially when it comes to eating well.
Anyway, here’s what I threw in the mix:
1/3 c. rolled oats
a couple shakes of cinnamon
a bit of sea salt
1/8 c. whole milk (it’s all I had on hand. I’d have preferred almond milk)
1 tbsp. almond butter
small handful of organic dried mixed berries
1 tsp. or so of cacao nibs
a pinch or two of unsweetened coconut flakes
I combined the mixture in a bowl and then spread/patted it onto a small plate in the form of a laaarrrge cookie and stuck it in the fridge overnight.
When I took it out this morning, the oats had absorbed the milk and the texture was like oatmeal cookie dough. Meaning that it’s a breakfast “cookie” you eat with a fork, not with your hands. It was good, though! I wish I’d had a banana in the house because I think that would’ve been a great addition. The mix-ins are endless. Many of The Fitnessista’s readers added their mix-in combinations in the comments section of her B-Fast Cookie entry (which I linked to in the first paragraph).
A similar idea that I haven’t tried yet is Carrots ‘N’ Cake’s Overnight Oats in a Jar .
Why don’t you give one of these cold oat combos a whirl tonight and let me know what mix-in combination you came up with?
A Lesson in Homophones
June 6th, 2010 § 1 Comment
Setting: Peter’s nightlight-illuminated room. Bedtime. Mama is patiently rocking in rocking chair. Peter is chatting and roaming around room, attempting to prolong the bedtime ritual for as long as humanly possible.
He picks up his green sippy cup.
Peter: Juicy water*?
Mama: Nope, just plain water.
Peter: Plain water? (lifts cup of PLAIN water over his head and starts flying it as if it were a PLANE.)
The English language is so confusing.
*(“juicy water”= watered-down juice)
