Reflections on Tomatoes

  You know something I learned while washing dishes and staring at the row of store-bought tomatoes lining our windowsill?  They all look the same.  They are the same shape, same color, same size, same spherical perfection.  If I were to study them, and someone would then mix them up, I probably wouldn't be able to put them in the same order that I had studied them in.  They look too much alike.

  Our garden tomatoes on the other hand... they each have their own personality.  Bug bites, large, small, round, oval, heart-shaped, just-plain-warped, red, greenish, orange, yellow... they're all different.  They are unique.  They aren't just a bunch of cookie cutter tomatoes, picked at the same time and ripened at the same time.  They are hand picked when they are at their prime - twisted or small, it doesn't matter.  And you know what?  They taste way better than those beautiful, perfect, store bought tomatoes.

  I also noted that although our garden tomatoes may have bug bites and be warped, we don't really care.  We know what they're made up of and where they're from.  We know that as soon as our tongue makes contact with the juicy red plumpness that we'll care less what the outside looked like. 

  Now, I'm not really a tomato expert, neither am I that fond of tomatoes (I used to sell them because I wouldn't eat them).  I can stand them in any form but their whole form.  But still, I must admit (with a little sheepishness) that our garden tomatoes far outpass the store bought beauties we are forced to buy when our gardnen's out of commission. 

What lesson did I draw from this?  I'm sure you can guess.

  There's a common notion that people pass along that goes something like, "the beauty's on the inside" or "inside beauty."  It stems from the realization that some people may not be beautiful on the outside but they have that winning personality, or the sweet disposition, or an upstanding character.  This is the "beauty" that we hint at in those phrases stated above.

  I know of several young ladies who have no "knock-out" type looks to speak of and yet they have won a place in my "good lookin' ladies" list. Why?  Because they have the "inward beauty of a meek and quiet spirit."  Their personalities and characters have made them beautiful.  They are the home-grown garden tomatoes.

  On the other hand, I know of another set of ladies who may have the bomb hair or the gorgeous eyes or the incredible facial features, and yet lack in the area of inward beauty.  And you know what?  They aren't on my list of "good lookin' ladies.  Why?  Because they may be snotty, whining, fussy, rude or even too girlie for me.  They become unpleasant to be around and thus their looks mean nothing.  They are the store-bought beauties.

  I can't stress enough how important it is for girls to focus on those things which are long lasting.  Who wants a perfect beauty if she's rotten or tasteless on the inside?  Establish your own sense of purpose, your own set of convictions.  Let the Holy Spirit do His work on your heart.  You may not be perfect on the outside, but if you've been working on the inside, your efforts will start showing.

  I'm always disgusted when I see girls trying so hard to look like everyone else.  They are just another perfect tomato sitting on the windowsill, unidentifiable when surrounded by their peers.  They dress like them, act like them, talk like them.  They are those girls that, when you get to know them, you realize it's all skin deep.  There's nothing substantial.  Just going to a county fair gives an overwhelming feeling of monotony.  Surrounded by tan babes wearing as little clothing as possible, sporting a flirty attitude, I rather feel like a sore spot in the crowd.  But is that a bad thing?

   When we have developed those things that are lasting, namely a godly character and all the wonderful things that come with it, we may look different, yet we have a beauty that no perfect store-bought "tomato" could ever possess.  It can't help but shine through.  We should take care to keep ourselves well tended, but it shouldn't be an obsession.  Rather, it will just be an enhancement of the inner beauty that we've labored for so earnestly.  That's the tasty part of the tomato.

  And acquire your own personality (be it sweet and kind!).  Don't mimic what everyone else does and says.  Have your own opinions, your own standards and your own religion.  Don't be a copycat.  They're miserable to have around.

  ...And don't be afraid to get dirty!  A little sweat didn't hurt nobody (sorry for the bad grammer there... just trying to add to the point).  Get your hands soiled, your hair messy, your neck sweaty.  It all adds to the character development! :)

Make My Life As Kindling...

Yes, I'm home.  Sorry it's taken me so long to blog.  I've been um... recuperating.  I haven't recovered from jet lag as well as I'd thought.  I did fine recovering when I arrived in India, but this time has been harder.  And, I'm having bowl problems.  It feels like I'm having culture/food shock, yet in my very own country!  Weird.

  I haven't been sleeping well since arriving home.  I wake up several times in the night (usually around 4 which was lunch time in Thailand).  I can't fall asleep well.  Like, last night, it took me over 2 hours to get to sleep!  Pathetic!  But, I started counting to 100 in Spanish and that did the trick.  I didn't even get to 80. But either way, I'm suffering from lack of sleep.  I only got like around 5 hours of sleep or less on the whole trip home which I'm guessing was around 2 1/2 or 3 days of traveling.  Yes, I'm very tired.

  But it sure feels good to be home.  I hadn't really felt like I was gone that long.  Seeing my family wasn't such a big deal like it was when I came back from Guatemala, but that's partly due to Skype (bless those who came up with it!).  And seeing our home after 6 1/2 weeks didn't strike any resounding chord in my heart... I was just happy to see it and hit the bed.  How undramatic.

  I have changed, though.  Yes, I have changed... a lot.  In different ways.  I knew I would.  No one can go on a mission trip and not be changed somehow.  What changed?

  What first gave me hints as to a hidden change in me, was when I came home, opened my closet and got an overwhelming feeling that I had way too many clothes.  It probably takes me just as much time finding what I want to wear that day as it does shopping for clothes (okay, exaggeration).  Life was so simple when I only had 5 shirts to choose from in my suitcase.  I began tearing through my closet.  A growing pile of clothing items started taking up floor space as unwanted/unworn/too small/too large apparel were thrown on the ground.  And there's still more than I need!  I walk into my room and immediately find things that I don't really need or want and they're promptly thrown away or in the "Goodwill" pile.  I hardly have any "but I might need this someday" or "what on earth are you doing?" thoughts.  It's almost like I'm doing a much needed "past-due-date" cleansing.

  I can't not think of all those disadvantaged people in those 3rd world countries and sit in idle repose surrounded by my luxurious living.  Sure, my family's not rich Americans (far from it), but we still have way more than we need.  Americans in general become so caught up in the pursuit of money, career, popularity and education that we begin collecting "non-essentials" that only take up space.  It's ridiculous.  Sell some of your collectables and help someone in India, for crying out loud.

  Also, my world view has changed... drastically.  Having only been to the Americas, it was a totally new experience to see the Asian countries, their religions, their beliefs, their lives, their diets and their values.  Most Indians value family.  South Korea values education.  Thailand values... um... tourism?  I don't know.  But their values change their country.  Their values could make their country prosperous or not.  Their religions have such a hold on them.  Some religions are so oppressing that it's almost as though the people are slaves to it... yet they've put the bonds of servanthood on themselves.  They trust in wood and stone and are slaves to their own fears.  

  

  I've also changed in that I've got that fire for missions again.  Sure, I always have an ember in my heart, but it's become a fire again.  I say "again" because I always get that fire when I go on a mission trip.  And every time, it grows bigger and bigger and doesn't die away easily.  But shouldn't it be that way?  We all need that fire.

  I just wish I could share some of it with the slumbering people here in the States.  If only I could kindle a fire under them and wake them up to the world's condition and the eminent return of our Lord and all the work that needs to be done.  Stop focusing on how you can get as much out of life as possible.  Instead, focus on how much you can give.  Give yourself away.

  There's a quote that I heard from a song years back that has become my motto.  I find it fitting to this desire of mine and is my heartfelt prayer...

"Make my life as kindling, to set the world on fire."

  I can change that to..."set Lewiston on fire."  Or, "set Orofino on fire."  Or Kooskia.  Or Clarkston.  If I can start a spark in one place, it can spread to encompass the whole world.  I'm going to start with my closest mission fields right now.  Will you help me start a wildfire?

Seoul Korea!

I realize that I love experiencing different cultures!

Me with some girls in the traditional Korean costume

  Whatever part of the culture it is.  On the tour, we went to the palace of a king from a dynasty of long ago.  I learned different things about the Korean history.  And I got to talk with one of the Korean ladies on the tour and I learned a ton more.  She says that Korea has a very vibrant economy right now, but doesn't have much for natural resources (much like Japan, which was a factor that played into the WWII). They put a huge focus on education, but not creativity.  So she says that they don't have many "Steve Jobs", as she put it.  And yet they're super smart, but not allowed to use those smarts appropriately.  She's disappointed that Korea is only known for the Korean War and that's about it.  I could understand that.

  Anyway, the funnest part of the tour for me, was to eat at a local restaurant.  I ordered something called Bi Bim Bap.  It was a red rice topped with an assortment of vegetables.  It was delicious except for the fact that they put a blob of runny egg on the top.  I tried to gingerly pick the egg off with my spoon, but was horrified when the whole thing burst upon my touch and started to run onto all my delicious vegetables!  I've never been a connoisseur of eggs and actually pretty much despise them unless they're fried really well.  Thankfully, because I choose to be vegan and I'm actually allergic to eggs, I don't ever have to search hard for an excuse not to eat them... except when they've exploded onto your whole lunch.  Yuck!  I picked around the egg as much as possible, but was still disgusted when I would get a slight taste of it.  Oh well.  Otherwise, the meal was wonderful!  I got to try kimchi, which was yummy except that it was a tad too spicy for my taste.  And, hey!  I've gotten pretty good at eating with chopsticks now!  I'm pretty proud of myself! :)

  I sat with two gentlemen who turned out to be so very nice!  King is Thai and so we talked a lot about Thailand and it's culture and what not.  And Bob is from New York, a single man who loves to travel and has been vegan for over 15 years!  He loved talking about eating vegan/vegetarian and I found that we hit it off really well.  He mentioned that he does green drinks whenever possible and I couldn't contain myself!  When I told him we did green drinks, he laughed long and hard.  He couldn't believe it!  It was a fun conversation, to say the least!  And now, King is considering trying the vegetarian thing!  How neat!

  Anyway, both guys stuck with me as we explored the walking souvenir street, which was a relief to me.  There wasn't much new that I hadn't seen from Thailand or India.  Seems like these Asian countries have a similar taste in... pretty much everything.  But I bought a scarf (I love scarves!) and some postcards.  I had to get something from Korea.

  We also visited a Buddhist temple.  I didn't have the guts to walk inside in the middle of their worship service.  It reminded me a lot of Catholicism... the candles, the huge statues (of Buddha), the prayer beads.  It all seemed vaguely familiar, yet foreign at the same time.  Pillows were placed on the floor and several ladies were doing some sort of prayer that involved them kneeling with their face to the floor then standing up, then kneeling, then standing... a workout in and of itself.  Who needs a gym when your Buddhist?

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  But, I was saddened to see these dear people so steeped in their religion of works.  Near the temple was a tall structure that was some sort of prayer thing too.  Several people were seen walking around it. According to Dam Bi, our tour guide, the people walk around it so many times to ask their petition.  They pause at different places to bow with hands together, praying.  Then they continue on their journey around the structure... for who knows how long.  And then, they walk away fully believing that they've been heard.  By whom?

  But I was surprised to learn that South Korea is half Christian and half% Buddhist (after learning this, I looked it up.  Here's the stats - 46% no religion, 23% Buddhist, 30% Christian.  Not too bad).  That's more Christian then a lot of other Asian countries.  Like India, which is 80% Hinduism and only 2.3% Christian.  That's a sizable difference.

Anyhow, I did enjoy my tour a lot and was thankful I took it.  I was really tired after, for I hadn't gotten hardly any sleep since Sunday night.  But it was worth it (the tour)!  What a great experience!