Coincidence? I Think Not...

Do you believe in coincidences?

Or...is there a higher power at work?

If you read Tuesday’s blog post, it was entitled The 2010 Passion Awards, and talked of a dinner that Hubs and I attended on Monday night….

To refresh your memory, there were approximately 240 ministries in the Kansas City area that were featured, with a dozen of them receiving grants from the Servant Christian Community Foundation that evening.

Although all of the ministries were impressive, one that stood out to me that night was MODELS.



MODELS is a mentoring program here in Kansas City, for middle and high school young women.

Their mission is to provide a safe place for the young women to express the specific issues and concerns they face and in turn, to help guide them using truths from the Bible.

The reason this program stood out to me is that it isn’t just a “giving” ministry. And nothing against giving – don’t get me wrong. But I sometimes feel that “giving” sometimes leads to an “entitlement” mentality by the recipients – and I struggle with that.

I like ministries that educate and teach empowerment to the recipients, so that they can, in turn, take the skills and lessons learned and pay it forward.

And MODELS does that.

So…fast forward a few nights to Thursday night, when Hubs and I attended “Dining in the Dark”, which I blogged about HERE.

We had greeted some friends, and then strolled through the pre-dinner cocktail party, looking for a place to sit down and enjoy our drinks.

Most tables were filled with people – until I spotted a table with only two young women sitting at it…with two empty chairs.

Perfect.

I asked if we could join their table, and they politely said, “Sure!”

So, we sat…and then did the polite introduction thing you do when you don’t really know someone but you’re meeting them at a fundraiser…the usual questions of “What’s your name?”, “What do you do?”, and “How did you hear about this event?”

These young women, Chrishanna and Latasha, had already captured my attention with their obvious poise, intelligence and manners – and at such a young age, I was impressed!



I asked how they had met each other, and they replied, “At church.” They then said they are both involved with a program at their church, called “MODELS”.

“We mentor young ladies in our community to become better women.”

No way.

Was this the same program I had just learned about on Monday night that had so intrigued me?

Yes. It was.

I was nudged Monday night when learning about MODELS. Out of the 240 ministries, there were only about 4 or 5 that I could remember through the evening. And MODELS was one of them.

And 3 nights later, we happen to randomly choose a table at a cocktail party where two of the MODELS mentors just happen to be sitting.

Now, tell me it’s not a small world, after all.

And tell me that God doesn’t put people in your path for a reason.

Because I won’t believe you.

Peace.

Dining in the Dark

Sometimes, its what you can't see that makes you appreciate everything that you DO see.

Hubs and I went out last night for another fabulous dinner....

The food was fantastic! And to give you a tease of what we dined on, here's a photo of our entree:



Oh, you can't see it?

Well, guess what?

We couldn't see it either!!!

We went to "Dining in the Dark", where the tagline says, "What happens at Dining in the Dark? That’s between you, yourself
and you. And maybe the person next to you. Please join us for food, drink and whatever else you can imagine. In complete darkness."

I had discovered this unique fundraiser, which benefits Alphapointe Association for the Blind, from a friend on Facebook, Jeff. I quickly made reservations, as I knew this would be a very "eye-opening" experience.

Hubs and I arrived at Crown Center around 5:40 p.m., in time to enjoy some delicious cocktails and conversation.

Here's a "self-portrait" of us at the pre-dinner cocktail hour:



We met up with my friend, Jeff and his wife, Cindy, and then eventually sat down at a table with these two fabulous young ladies:



Meet Chrishanna and Latasha, two very up-and-coming young business women who are doing fantastic things in our community, and who SO impressed me, that they will be getting their own blog entry tomorrow! So - don't miss that, as it is truly an amazing and inspiring story! And a God moment, if there ever was one!

Anywho, we were eventually given aprons to put on, so we wouldn't ruin our dresses and suits. Our aprons were adorned as such:


Then, it was time to be taken into the dining room, which was completely dark. In order to go in, we had to line up like this:



The eight of us at our table followed Jamal, our waiter, into the dining room, which looked like this:



It was quite an adventure trying to find my chair and get myself seated. I couldn't see ANYTHING!

I cautiously put my hands up on the table, so I could find my water glass, and found myself touching something mushy.

EWWWW!!! What IS it??!!

Oh. It's butter. I must have found my bread plate. After twice putting my fingers in my butter, I got smart and turned the bread plate around, so to put the butter far, far away from my prying fingers. Duh.

I found my water glass, and placed it in the 1:00 o-clock position...so that I wouldn't knock it over every time I'd reach for it.

With my exploring fingers, I managed to find a napkin...don't know if it was my neighbor's or not - but it was mine now, and so I grabbed it and put in my lap. Whew. Passed the napkin test with no casualties or spilled water or butter on my fingers.

The eight of us at our table introduced ourselves - in total darkness - as we all tried to navigate the table. We realized we had a salad in front of us - my fingers could feel lettuce....

So, picking up my fork, I stabbed my salad and lifted it to my mouth. GIANT piece of fruit!!! Yuck!!! I don't like fruit!!!

It's very off-putting when you put one thing in your mouth, when you're expecting another. I had been expecting lettuce. Not fruit.

As we all valiantly made efforts at eating our salads, Jamal came around with our wine glasses.

I proposed a toast, which, for some reason, was thought amusing by my tablemates.

My toast was, "Here's to us - and to a unique dining experience. Remember - what happens in the dark...."

"STAYS IN THE DARK!!!" Yay...my fellow diners are SO onboard with this!

Unfortunately, during the toast, Hubs knocked over his water glass - which went in my direction. We sopped up water, as best we could, in complete darkness. Fun!

Eating a salad in the dark is very strange. I had no idea I was eating a dried cranberry...all I could tell, it was chewy and sticky. It took Hubs to identify it as a cranberry. I had no idea how much of the salad I eventually ate - I couldn't tell if my plate was clean or not, and there was NO WAY I was running my fingers over a sticky plate. Ew. Not worth having sticky fingers so early in the meal, so I just set my fork down and let it go.

We eventually got our salad plates cleared - in the dark - and then Jamal came in with our entrees. We had been given no clue as to what we would be eating.

I stabbed my fork into my plate, brought it up to my mouth, and tasted....nothing. I had an empty fork. Missed. Oops.

Tried again.

Got a nibble of something....creamy....rice? Sauce? Not sure at this point.

I started stabbing again, and managed to "snag" something big. Took my other hand to gingerly feel what was on my fork, and realized it was meat, of some sort.

I set the "mystery meat" back on my plate, found my knive, and attempted to cut off a bite.

No way was this going to work. I couldn't tell if I had a small, manageable bite - or a huge, honkin' bite...so I just set the silverware down, used my fingers, and ate the meat, which turned out to be a delicious chicken. Yum. And no one even knew I was using my fingers, because we were ALL blind, so there. No gettin' after me on my bad table manners.

I found potatoes on my plate at one point - woot! Those were good, too.

And then, when I thought I had finished everything, I picked my fork back up and made several scraping motions across the plate and tested the fork for food...empty. I must be done. Right?

I thought I would test the plate one more time...so, I cautiously put my finger on my plate and poked around - and found...a tree???

Broccoli! How did I miss this earlier???! Yum.

As we dined, we chatted...made jokes...but gained a whole new appreciation for people who are visually impaired.

Both Hubs and I said that we felt almost claustrophobic in the dark...it was oppressive and weighty, and a little intimidating. Things we take for granted - reaching for a water glass, cutting meat, knowing if you've cleaned your plate - became major actions on our part during this dining experience.

How do I know if this is salt? Or pepper? How do I know if my water glass is empty? If I've cut my food into small enough pieces? If I have enough butter on my bread?

Eventually, the lights came back on...both for dessert and for the presentation afterwards...and we all agreed, that this experience had been SO worth it.

Wow.

Truly eye-opening, in every way.

There were photos on our tables of what we had eaten, and so this is a photo of a photo of the salad we had:



And a photo of the photo of our entree:


(And you tell me, how did I miss that "tree" until the end of my meal??!!??!!)


If you EVER get an opportunity to do this, please, do it.

Because, as we learned, it is a terrible thing to see and yet, have no vision.

Peace.

Why I Vote

Yesterday was Election Day, and we all have our own various reasons for voting....

For some, we recognize that it's our civic duty - patriotism, responsibility, and all that.

For some, we vote because we like to proudly wear the "I Voted!" sticker the rest of the day.

And for some...like me...it's so that we can cancel out our spouse's ballot.

I recognized early on in our relationship that Hubs and I are pretty much polar opposites in just about everything....

He hates football...I love football.

He hates television...I like it.

He eats healthy...I hate eating healthy.

He's an Early Bird. I'm a Night Owl.

And when it coms to politics? Oh, geesh. He's Ying, and I'm Yang.

We've learned over the years to never really discuss politics. Period. We've both learned that we will never, ever change each other's minds on ANY issue or candidate.

And so, we each quietly go - separately, of course - to the polling place on Election Day, knowing that our primary motivation is canceling the other out.

Isn't love grand?

Peace.

The 2010 Passion Awards

A few years back, Hubs and I were blessed enough to be able to invest in a foundation. The foundation we chose was the Servant Christian Community Foundation, which allows us to make charitable contributions to agencies of our choice, thereby helping to make a difference in the world.

Last night was a celebration banquet, the 2010 Passion Awards, which celebrated various organizations and agencies that were the lucky recipients of grants from the Servant Christian Foundation. In fact, one agency was awarded $25,000 last night - how cool is that?!

Hubs and I decided to join 1,000 of our nearest and dearest friends and enjoy the festivities.

Dress code was "business casual", so I put together my "boring beige" outfit, as I call it:



This outfit combines my brown tweed pants with a nice, cozy sweater. My only complaint is that the sleeves are short - and the venue we were at was FREEZING! I wished I had put on long sleeves - oh well. Live and learn. However, this outfit is comfortable - which is always my #1 priority in clothing!

So, we arrived at the Overland Park Convention Center, where we were prompted up the elevator:



We then checked in, and were directed to Table 2. We had been invited to event by Frank Brown, one of the board members, and we were privileged to sit at his table. Considering there were over 100 tables, we were thrilled to be at #2!


Hubs and I at our table, pre-show

We had a delicious dinner that was catered by Fiorella's Jack Stack, which began with THE most delicious spinach salad:



I love spinach salad - and this was one of the best. Ever. Everything came together perfectly - and I just about licked my platter clean, but I knew that wouldn't have been cool.

Next, we had beef brisket, garlic whipped potatoes, with a side of lemon zest green beans:



The brisket was cut-with-a-fork tender, so I enjoyed it. Ever since my infamous jaw injury of 8 years ago, I don't eat a lot of meat - especially if there's a lot of chewing involved, so I appreciate a tender cut. And this was tender. The potatoes? Too garlicy, for me. I thought they were over-seasoned, and this was surprising, as normally, I've never met a potato I didn't like. The green beans? Bleh. I like green beans - but not these. Too much lemon, perhaps?

For dessert, we had a choice of chocolate layer cake, or a white cake with butter cream frosting. I went against type, and actually enjoyed the white cake:



After dinner, the program started - we enjoyed some great speakers, a fantastic praise band, and some amazing videos that highlighted the award winners. We learned about some awesome ministries that are happening right here in Kansas City, as well as all over the world.



I think what impressed me about this event was the passion that was on display - the passion that these various agencies and their volunteers have in ministering to people all over the world. I was humbled, really, to be in their presence, as these people are TRULY changing lives and making the world a better place.

Very inspirational.

Peace.

A Halloween Haunting at my House

Alfred Hitchcock's spirit lives on.

I was sitting quietly by my window yesterday, watching some scary, spooky football on TV, when I noticed some "dark shadows" flying by the glass.

I looked out the window - and promptly freaked out.

THIS is what I saw:





Hundreds of birds had descended into my backyard - for what? I have no idea. It's not like I had been out there, throwing "trick-or-treat" birdseed to them...

And yet - they had obviously found the mother-lode of something delectable in the grass....



The fact that it was happening on Halloween, combined with one-too-many-viewings of Alfred Hitchcock's "The Birds", which totally freaks me out every time I see it, was a little too much for me.



I don't like mass groupings of birds. I don't trust them. I don't like them. It freaks. me. out.

I was running back and forth, alternating between taking photos (wanted to show the Hubs later when he got back home) and flapping my own arms in a mild hysteria, shrieking, "What are they DOING? What do they WANT? Get RID of them!!!"

So, my 17-year old son decided to be the Hitchcock Hero (although he could have been the Hitchcock Victim just as easily, so kudos to him for his bravery!) and went outside to shoo them away:



Is that just not...weird?

Bizarre.