Baking it Up

This year in Taiwan, if there is an official holiday/day off on a Tuesday or a Thursday, we get to take the corresponding Monday or Friday off as well. However, since we take off a work day to make a weekend long, we have to make that workday up the following Saturday. No comment.

We have three or four of these "Saturday make up school days" this year. One of them was this past Saturday. I decided to turn it into a baking class. (Some of these children didn't get any weekend since they had school on Saturday, some of their Saturday cram schools were pushed to Sunday. Again, no comment.) It was the least I could do. Plus, doing something hands on like that is an awesome way to put language into practical use. (Since I was a language cop and insisted on ONLY English being used the whole time.) They read the recipe and each group of students made up a half batch of my mom's recipe for the "Best Yet Chocolate Chip Cookies." Yum! I was really proud of them... here are some pictures from the event. :) Oh, and it was extra super duper because the students got to see the living room and kitchen of "Anna's house," aka, the Practice Hotel.

The April Fool...

I want to share a song with you. And I thought it was appropritate for it being April Fools' Day and all. Actually, I may have posted this song last year... I can't quite remember, but may you be touched by the lryics either way. So many things about our faith in Jesus Christ are paradoxical. When we are weak, we are strong? The Creator of all things is also a personal Savior and Friend? God's wisdom is foolishness to man? Death brings life?

Here're the lyrics...

"God's Own Fool" by Michael Card
from the album, "Joy in the Journey"

Seems I've imagined Him all of my life
As the wisest of all of mankind
But if God's Holy wisdom is foolish to men
He must have seemed out of His mind

For even His family said He was mad
And the priests said a demon's to blame
But God in the form of this angry young man
Could not have seemed perfectly sane

Chorus
When we in our foolishness thought we were wise
He played the fool and He opened our eyes
When we in our weakness believed we were strong
He became helpless to show we were wrong
And so we follow God's own fool
For only the foolish can tell-
Believe the unbelievable
And come be a fool as well

So come lose your life for a carpenter's son
For a madman who died for a dream
And you'll have the faith His first followers had
And you'll feel the weight of the beam
So surrender the hunger to say you must know
Have the courage to say I believe
For the power of paradox opens your eyes
And blinds those who say they can see

Chorus

So we follow God's own Fool
For only the foolish can tell
Believe the unbelievable,
And come be a fool as well