All the stars and boulevards

Maybe I should skip weekend themes. I don't get many blogging opportunities over the weekend. Maybe I'll do a vote and keep the best 5 themes. Anyway, until then...

Savory Saturday
I tried one of those flatbread egg sandwiches from Dunkin Donuts and it was quite good! It wasn't SUPER flavorful, but it was definitely light and healthy. It held me over until lunch, but just barely. It was also kind of expensive. I'll stick to the homemade version. But, if you're ever on the road and need a healthy alternative, I'd recommend it. I had a Special K meal bar for lunch and it was super good! It was chocolate peanut butter flavored...tasted like a candy bar! I'd DEFINITELY recommend this!

Spiritual Sunday
In grad school a classmate was sharing her cultural inquiry (5-min presentation about her own life/culture), and I found it extremely moving. I actually cried! Her story went something like this...Kathy's mother was half-Asian and married her American husband to spite her father (who hated Americans); she told her father she'd marry to first American to pay her any attention, and she did. They had 10 children together, and then she just up and left. Kathy's father was left to raise 10 children. She said she and her father argued a lot when she was in high school, due to generational differences. She decided to move out at 18, and they became very close after that. She had a child in her 20's and became a single mother, and the pain from her mother's abandonment and the strength of her father's example helped her to be the best mother she could be to her son, who is now 15. She said her father passed away a few years ago, and during that period, all her siblings were sorting out who would get what. She said all she wanted was her father's Bible, which she knew he read every single day of his life. She got it, and it now rests on her nightstand, opened to his favorite excerpt. Kathy said the greatest thing she ever learned from her father is to "never question God." She said she believes everything--even bad things--happen for a reason, and we are in no position to question it. We should accept the things that happen, appreciate and/or grow from them, and be optimistic about the future. She said her father's example in how he loved his family and how he loved God shaped her into the strong, independent woman she is today.

Music & Movie Monday
Right now I have revived my Augustana CD. It was a favorite a few years ago, and I have been listening to it for a few days straight now. Here's an acoustic version of my fav song on their album titled All the Stars and Boulevards: