We Are Womans

Given the opportunity, my mom will share two primary stories of my childhood. The time I told my kindergarten teacher that my dad had left us forever (he was only on a business trip, apparently I really craved the attention of my dinosaur of a teacher who smelled of cigarettes and stale coffee) and my Four Year Old Inquistion. With great curiosity one day, I turned to my mother and inquired, "Mom, are we womans?" 

I must applaud her for containing her raucous laughter. With almost all composure, she responded with equivalent dignity, "yes, Emilie, we are womans." What caused my great need to confirm this fact is a mystery. Maybe I felt slightly insecure with my child-version of the Hanson brothers haircut, or possibly I just wanted to hear that I belonged. 

Regardless, on occasion, I still find myself checking in. Not necessarily of my Woman-ness, but on the integrity of it. You see, I love being a girl. At times, even recently, I have robbed myself of some of that joy by allowing insecurity to override, but in general it is an absolute pleasure. Beth Moore recently reminded me that to be a woman (in reference to p31) is to be worthy of respect, and likewise to offer that to others. 

And that, dear hearts, is a job big enough in itself. Men fight their own bloody battle in the war of manhood, and we have to take some ownership of our fight. In my love of womanhood, I have often lived defeated under an umbrella of insecurity of women I thought better. I speak from experience when I say that no one benefits from creating a mental hierarchy of the women who surround us. It only leaves you on the bottom or top, both are lonely places to make a home. So here's the thing, we really can help each other in this and I wanted to share some of the ways we can. Even if this isn't your current or frequent battle, remember these for the sake of each other, because God knows we all need some allies. 

Also in theme with childhood moments, a montage of the Best (of the worst) Emilie Fashion Moments of 1993. 

-Stop comparing yourself. Stop Pinning quotes of this and just start doing it. We do ourselves and each other a great disservice and lose a lot of ground when we constantly mentally rank ourselves. Our time could be spent better. 

(I was a pumpkin for Halloween five times, mom made the costume and wanted her sweat equity out of it)

-Encourage one another. Be genuine and specific. We could all use more positive reinforcement, especially from people who we may feel threatened by. 

(I hope the black shoes distract you from my toe-headed mullet)

-Speak kindly of one another even when they're not around. We don't have to qualify our stories involving other girls if there is nothing but positive intent in telling it. 

(Why yes, I was the third child and those were all hand me downs....thank you for noticing)

-Know yourself. When you understand your likes and dislikes, preferences, inclinations, tendencies, it allows you to offer others the space to figure that out for themselves. It also enables you to pick out similarities or differences in them and enjoy them better for it. 

(I may not rock bed head-but at least I wore peplum 17 years before it was cool) 

These are things I'm finding helpful in my own day to day. There is room to laugh at ourselves and grace for mistakes with one another when we're not so afraid or feel the need to posture or extend ourselves past what is healthy. And that's what I'm after my friends, let's be the best damn womans we can be. 

Juniper Rose Cupcakes

Few things in my life right now excite me quite like good food and good people. Except maybe good people who will talk with me about good food. So when my sister told me about a lovely new spice shop that opened in Brookside, Season and Square, I knew I needed to venture and drag my roommate, Olivia, with me. Not surprisingly, we spent an hour chatting with the owner, a delightful and inspiring woman. 

She introduced us to Dram Apothecary, a company that forages their own herbs/flora to concoct bitters and simple syrups that are earthy and ingenious. Not to mention that their lives are about traveling and picking flowers in order to make cocktails, I'm jealously swooning. My mother had passed along half a bottle of their Juniper Rose simple she had picked up on her own trip to Season. Her exhortation being to bake with it and tell her what to do. 

Discussing with my libation-savvy friend Andrew what would be a good companion for my new acquisition. We settled on cucumber, playing off the cocktail concept, and thus these cupcakes were born. They're different, really light and refreshing as opposed to being extremely sweet, which is how I prefer my pastry. However, I know my brother would be bewildered if I attempted to offer him something so obscure, to put it kindly. 

Juniper Rose Cupcakes with Cucumber Buttercream

Cupcakes:

2 1/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp salt

1/4 tsp baking soda

12 tbsp unsalted butter (I am ardently against margarine ps....use the real stuff), room temp

1 1/4 cups white cane sugar

3 large eggs, room temp

1/4 cup Dram's Juniper Rose simple

1/4 cup gin 

1 cup tonic water (mine was flat, so I used Grapefruit La Croix, it worked splendid)

1/2 tsp rose extract (I tried 1 1/2, but it was a little too floral) 

Cucumber Buttercream

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temp

4-6 cups confectioners sugar 

1/3 cucumber puréed 

1/2 lime 

For the cake: 

-Preheat oven to the good ole 350

-Combine dry ingredients in a bowl and stir

-In a mixing bowl, cream together the butter and sugar

-Add one egg at a time, letting it come together before adding the next 

-Add in the simple, gin and rose extract 

-Be a good baker and add half the dry, followed by half the tonic, then the other halves, letting it blend in between.. I, however, am impatient and added it all at once. Don't do that.

-Fill 24 cupcake liners about 2/3 full and pop in the oven for 18 minutes

-Turn on US Youth Olympics while they bake 

For the buttercream:

-Puree the cucumber in a food processor or blender

-Combine butter and confectioners sugar to mixer and cream

-Slowly add cucumber purée to the mixture letting it blend

-Add more confectioners sugar as you see fit to get desired texture

-Zest and juice the lime and add to mixer

This buttercream was the bane of my existence. I went through and amalgama of cucumber, minced, juiced, simple syruped, before landing on purée as the best texture and flavor. If there is one thing I am well versed in at the moment, it's the different consistencies a cucumber can take on. For those who interacted with me on Sunday, I apologize, I don't normally smell like Larry the Cucmber's estranged cousin. 

I imagine these would be the most fitting at a tea or garden party, but in true fashion, I plopped down on the floor in my living room with a cup of coffee and downed it. I have no shame when it comes to pastry. 

Toast and Jam

Simplicity has been calling my name lately.

If it is not vital or beautiful, it's out. The pink vest I bought in high school? Donated. The grey and white tennis shoes that have traveled through the river, trashed. Rightfully so. Junk food, begrudgingly being rerouted to others.

I have an extreme sense of removing anything superfluous from my life right now. I need breathing room. Other people with more self control are capable of having things surrounding them and keeping their mental faculties. When I am transitioning and overwhelmed, all extraneous things must go.

In my newfound simplicity I find I remember Jesus more. I am less distracted, more cognizant of being timely about things. And now I have the time to be timely. Today is my first real day off and i have done the below:

Ate toast and jam
Worn overalls.
Wandered River Market with my sister and niece.
Cut a cantaloupe.
Drank three cups of coffee via Quay and Thou Mayest
This is the happiest list. I don't really need much.

In this new season I look forward to this. I am grateful to approach things with sincerity and focus. To embrace my interests well and devout energy to them. I loved my season to work and build another's dream, but this change is beautiful too.  And after a few difficult weeks of big beginnings and ends, it's lovely to have a moment for vision. If all transitions were seamless, there would not be freedom. Freedom comes in knowing that my physical nature does not dictate my hope. It's been rocky, and more often than not others have been having to replant me back there, but it's starting to settle in my bones too.

Ease in Risk

"Would you like adventure now or should we have tea first?"

-Peter Pan

My life is like the Alice in Wonderland Unbirthday Party. Rabbits have pocket watches and I quit my job. To save you all from the catalog of events, basically I sensed God asking me to take a risk and I said yes.

There has to be a lot for me in what's to come because I love where I have been. But in stepping into this, He has been so sure. Kindly providing bread crumbs along the way to remind me that I may not know where I'm going, but there is a trail and He is positive of the direction. 

Facing this decision has been difficult. My routine is going to change. My status is going to change. My stability is going to change. There is risk to this and adjustments that must be made. Friends to be missed. Tears are close at hand lately as I consider that ominous moment Tuesday when I say goodbye. I'm terrible with goodbyes even when I don't like the situation I'm in, so leaving something I love for reasons that are still pretty ambiguous is overwhelming. 

But here God is enough. Here there is rest in the ebb. Here there is surety in enigmas. Here there is confidence in the tepid. 

These are the moments I hope I wear well, with grace and courage. Learning to believe in Provision. Satisfied in Divinity. Any given moment, there may be trepidation in my thoughts. But generally, I'm much more like Peter Pan. Content where I am, to soak in this moment as the delight it is, but preparing to head to the adventure when the time comes. 

One of the simply lovely people I have come to know this year caught me as I was leaving Quay the other day to share the below fragment from John O'Donohue's poem From the Beginning with me. It seems to be the appropriate summation

Awaken your spirit to adventure;

Hold nothing back, learn to find ease in risk;

Soon you will be home in a new rhythm,

For your soul senses the world that awaits you

Scott Zingerman

Next up to talk about churchies is Scottie. Scott is my best friend from college and a little schnookems. You may know him by his eyebrows. I met him in the cafeteria at school and had a big ole crush on him, but that marinated into tenacious friendship. He was my family in college. We asked questions about God, both dated and subsequently broke up with people, complained about roommates, he taught me how to wakeboard and I spent four years trying to prove I was cool. We grew up together. In a few weeks Scott is moving to the Ivory Coast for a year to be a teacher at a partner school of the one he works for in Tulsa. This guy, the one whose name is synonymous with adventure, is walking with such fervent faith into this knowing God to be big. I admire him fiercely and I am so grateful that we was willing to let me share his thoughts. 

// What do you see as being God's purpose behind the creation of church? //

I see God’s purpose in the creation of church as being a healthy way for people to interact and live together. We are social creatures and need social interaction. The church gives us a place where we can come and spend time with like-minded people. It is a place where Christians can encourage and guide each other in their pursuit of knowing Jesus and in following the commands that God gives in His word, the Bible. Church is not only designed to be a place of spiritual unity, but also a place where physical needs can be met. The church was given the responsibility in the New Testament to take care of those in need. This includes the poor, widows, orphans, and anyone going through a hard time and in physical need. The church was given this responsibility so that Christ’s love may be demonstrated in a broken and hurting world.

// Do you feel as if you are a part of something that falls within the purpose you described above? //

All the churches I have ever attended have definitely striven to achieve this purpose.

// Are you involved with an organized church body? //

I have been going to the church my parents attend since returning from college but have not fully engaged in the church because I am leaving for Africa in August to teach for a year.

// How do you find community in your life? //

In my life, I find community with the friends I spend time with. These friendships are very important to me as they help me process and get different perspectives on things from people I can be vulnerable with and whom I greatly care about and respect.

// What problems/hardships have you felt in your church experiences? //

The biggest problems I see in my experience at church are unrealistic expectations of people in the church. We must remember that we are all sinners in need of a Savior and remember to give each other grace.

// What do you think could be improved about the American church? // 

One thing that I and many other Americans struggle with is our consumerism mentality with church. We have the tendency to view church as a product and attend the one that gives us the most of what we want. Instead, we need to realize that no church is perfect, make a commitment to one, and devote ourselves to making it better.

// What is the one thing you would tell someone who isn't a Christian about church? //

I would encourage someone who isn't a Christian to try out a church but remember that we are all imperfect people striving to get closer to Christ and love one another.

To end, I'm using this as an excused to post one a montage of pictures from freshman year of college. Please enjoy the horrible quality and sweatpants....it was college and we apparently thought it fun to look homeless.

Movie Night 101

So I bought a projector. And last night commenced the first of hopefully many movie nights in the future. And like any good match up between me and a good idea, there were kinks. Well. One kink. But we'll get to that.

First, let me walk you through the other important factors necessary for a successful movie night.

Chipsters. This Jackson Family Classic surmise summer. Homemade chocolate chip cookies with a big ole scoop of ice cream and ugly-slapped together in a plastic baggie until the two unionize and become a frozen delight.



A white sheet. Which I didn't have, so I rushed to the land of tchotchkes, Walmart, to grab that.

Duct tape. Because really, who needs to be classy and hang the sheet from your house with something reasonable, like clothes pins?

Blankets and peelows (also known as pillows). Now don't skimp here. This is of vital importance to the feature. Without this staple piece, there could be potential havoc wrought by twigs and bugs trying to claim territory. But we must defeat them first, smothering them with cozy accoutrements. Once victory has been assured, move along to the next detail.

The film. Now when it came to picking the correct film, two things were considered. Notoriety and funness. I wanted a movie most people had seen, or at least heard of, but wasn't something they had to be extremely focused on since it was a group thing. Naturally, the Goonies was the only choice.

Finally, and most obviously, you'll need a projector. I bought mine for $65 on eBay a few weeks back. It's a tiny little guy, but he worked fabulously for my purposes.

You put all this together you and you get this.



But don't forget. The kink.

You see that adorable mint green Anthropologie speaker above? Yes, the tiny thing on the table. Turns out it works much better for background music at the pool than projecting Sloth's voice belting, "HEY YOU GUUUUUYS" at a humanistic volume.

The final result of the evening ended up being much more.....intimate, then the original set up. Subtitles were displayed and heads were systematically laid closely to our mint green baby. He tried so hard, the little speaker, but it was like trying to make Wonder Bread into a beautiful sourdough. It's just not in his DNA.

I am the Film Phoenix though, movie nights are going to rise from the ashes and come back with a vengeance.

Truly though, what's most important is that the Chipsters were excellent. And for me, that's enough.

Tyler St. Louis

.

Meet Tyler. Our friendship began in line at a Starbucks. He introduced himself as "Sweet Lou" and I thought he was lying about his name, the rest, as they say, is history. Now he gets mad at me for thinking too much and I get mad at him for liking Justin Bieber....it's a beautiful friendship. Tyler was gracious enough to go first, by virtue of being the first to return their answers. Really though, he's the best and below are the 7 questions I asked him about church and his straight answers

//  What do you see as being God's purpose/reason behind the creation of church?  //

Loaded question eh? If I had to guess, because as a man trying to figure out why an infinite God would do anything is almost laughable, I would guess that God created the church to draw people closer to Himself through community. I believe in a triune God, and by this community is in and of itself part of who God is. A perfectly eternal being in three parts constantly acting as one. So as I said, my guess would be that the church was created to be a place where people live in a community that tries to exemplify the same community that is God and in doing so draws closer to God. As this community grows closer to God it would display the character of who God is to the world. With this God could reveal himself through the community, allowing someone who believes in God or even someone that may not to feel welcomed, encouraged, and loved in a broken world.

//  Do you feel as if you are a part of something that falls within the purpose you described above?  //

Yes

//  Are you involved with an organized church body?  //

Yes

//  Where/how do you find community in your life?  //

I find community in my life among my friends and family. I find that the community that I enjoy the most though is the community of friends and family that are apart of the church. I think this is because generally they all want more for another than themselves. This is encouraging.

//  What problems/hardships have you felt in your church experiences?  //

The problems or hardships I have with the church? I guess I first have to examine myself. As a member of the church I would be a part of any problem or hardship I had with it. I guess a current hardship I have is when church bodies try to set standards or rules that people of the church must live up to or follow. I believe this can be helpful for some but may not be helpful for everyone. There are certain things a church should exemplify and try and uphold but when rules or standards start to be put in place their is generally a consequence for no upholding a rule or standard. This consequence can then cause people to live out those rules or standards but more so out of fear and fear is something that the people of God shouldn't be tied to. We are to be free from fear. This fear can also keep people from confessing or being honest about the sin they may have in their life. As the church we should exemplify love, grace, and peace not fear.

//  What do you think could be improved about the American church?  //

Whew. I don't have a clue. Perhaps at the core of any issue I might have with the american church would be a lack of faith in God. If God is as big as we believe Him to be, what if we truly trusted Him to do the things He promised and we did less. Sometimes I feel like we as Americans have the ability to do so much we lose the need for faith. This is both a blessing and a curse.

//  What is the one thing you would tell someone who isn't a Christian about church?  // 

I would tell them to try and find the church outside of a building. To connect with the people of the church outside of a place that may hold the name "church." To get to know those people, because those people are the church, not some building. I would encourage them to ask those people hard questions about their faith and have difficult conversations consistently even if they don't seem to agree. I would also tell them to love that person among those difficult conversations.

So that's Tyler. More to come!