A Book, A Recipe, & Some Words To Live By

 There is frost on the ground on this first day of spring but the sun is shining, and we have had some lovely glimpses of warmer days coming! While I would say that summer is my favorite season, spring is a close runner up. There is nothing quite like welcoming days of warm sunshine and the slow but sure appearance of green on the landscape. 

A couple of random things to share this morning...

If you are looking for a good book to read or listen to, I've got the perfect title. It's one that you can enjoy with your whole family. 

I have been reading Katrina's blog for quite a long time; I'm not even sure how I came across it. She is a wonderful story teller and I always enjoy reading her tales. She is the author of an impressively long line of books. I hadn't actually read any of them but when she introduced the title of this one, I couldn't resist. 

I kept thinking that I wanted to read this one but I don't buy books very often. I like to read but I'm a lot more of a "order books from the library" girl than a "walls lined with bookcases" one. When I discovered that the book was available on Audible, I snatched it up and couldn't stop listening. It is so good! The book is technically fiction but it's based on a true story and Katrina has done an amazing job of weaving a story from facts and research. You can find all the ordering information here. I didn't let the rest of the family listen to it, because I'm secretly saving it for a big trip we're planning for this summer. It will be a perfect audio book for traveling!

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People seem to always love recipes, so even though I'm not a foodie and don't enjoy cooking, it's fun to throw a recipe in now and then. I'm still regularly making the sourdough bread recipe that I shared here. We don't do much else with sourdough; it usually gets brought out roughly once a week, made into bread, and then returned to the fridge. Occasionally Jasmine or I will get inspired to try a random sourdough recipe but it's rare. A couple weeks ago I saw a recipe for sourdough tortillas. Not sure what strange mood I was in that day but I decided to try them. They actually turned out pretty well. They take more thinking ahead than the flour tortillas we normally make but they were tasty and would definitely be worth making again. 

Sourdough Tortillas 

1 C flour, 1/2 C wheat flour, 1/4 tsp salt,       1/4 tsp baking powder (Mix dry ingredients)

2 T lard or shortening (Cut in lard with fork)

1/4 C sourdough starter (mix in with fork)

1/2 C warm water (sprinkle in water until soft dough forms - may not need all water)

Knead a few times until soft. Wrap in plastic wrap and set aside to rest at room temp for at least 4 hours and up to 24 hours.

To make tortillas, divide into 6 pieces and roll out (tortillas will be small). Fry in hot skillet.

Yield - 6 small tortillas 

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Last, but not at all least, the words to live by.

 One day this week I was struggling with an incident that I desperately wished I could go back and erase. You know those times, when you want so desperately to do the right thing; be the right kind of person; say the right words? In fact, you've been running your mouth a lot about how to be and do all of that, and then suddenly you're confronted with being the person who did it all wrong and you just desperately want to erase it all and start over? On top of that, you are overwhelmed with the feeling that if you were trying that hard, and failed, you might as well quit? That's the kind I'm talking about. 

You know what God whispered to me,  through my tears and anguish? He said, "You are not the Savior in this story." It was the quietest, most gentle admonition but it stopped me in my tracks. I wanted desperately to fix it; all of it. I wanted to rush out and explain and smooth and fix and set straight. I was sure that there was so much misunderstanding and unnecessary hurt and it almost killed me to not try to fix it! 

"You are not the Savior in this story." 

Yes, I have a part. Yes, I need to try to live like Jesus. Yes, I need to shoulder my share of responsibility. Yes, I need to admit my failures. But ultimately, this is God's work. That is a freeing, humbling, important realization. 

I don't know if it's a realization that you need but I know that I do. 

Happy first Day of Spring and a good weekend to you!