Taiwanese Barbecue

With all of our Taiwan style barbecue experiences with Michael and Anna, we decided.... ok, I decided,  it was time for the Dingus family to try it out on our own.

You may be sitting there thinking, big deal, a barbecue is a barbecue.

But the differences between the two are vast.

Think back to this past summer at your family's Fourth of July reunion. Or more recently, Labor Day, the last fling of summer. 

The grill is turned on. Mom brings out a plate of perfectly shaped hamburger patties or maybe a couple of thick juicy steaks. Dad takes over, carefully guarding and supervising. Large puffs of smoke and aromas waft from the deck while Brother and Sister joyfully transport mustard, ketchup, Miracle Whip, pickles, tomatoes, and onions from the air conditioned kitchen.

 Ok, so maybe I swayed from reality a little bit, but you get the picture. 

Dad cooks the meat. Everyone sits down and eats. In a relatively short time, the food is consumed, the grill cleaned, and kitchen returned to its sparkling condition. 

As that the majority of Taiwanese families live in the city, backyards are a rarity, therefore, few if any, backyard decks exist. Most families simply set up on the sidewalk in front of their apartment.

Barbecues are short, near the ground. 

Stools are used for those doing the cooking.

And who does the cooking? 

Anyone.

 Everyone.

If you want it, you cook it.

As you can tell, a lot of the food is skewered with a stick, which makes for utensil free grilling.

While Carl wanted to throw those loved American hamburgers onto the grill, we went for more of the traditional barbecuing foods here in Taiwan.

Chicken- not quite as common as the rest of our choices.

Peppers

Water Bamboo

Tofu and Fishballs

Fresh Clams

The clams were joined by mushrooms and onions.

And, of course, shrimp. This one is ready for the grill!

Cooked and ready to peel and eat!

Pomeloes for dessert.

Moon cakes were also available for those who enjoy red bean paste as a dessert!

Hopefully everyone felt satisfied and full!

Impossible

How could my baby, my Jacob, be old enough to play a high school sport?

Yeah, I know. Nick is in college. I've come to terms with that one.

Yeah, I know. Ben is a senior this year and will be soon graduating and leaving us. I'm dealing with that one.

But, how in the world has Jacob become old enough, big enough, to actually take part in, be a member of a high school sport?

Just like most American schools, Morrison has varsity and junior varsity teams of all the major high school sports (except football,  of course). But Morrison also has a third level,  JVB. This team would be equivalent to the freshman team, except with one exception. Since Morrison's two other campuses offer ninth grade, the Taichung campus generally has a small freshman class making it difficult to always man these JVB teams, so eighth graders are given the opportunity to try out and become members.

Jacob, despite the lack of a huge amount of soccer experience, is a member of the JVB team.

Last Thursday, Morrison's JVB team challenged the JV team to an afternoon soccer match.

Jacob got some playing time.

Now that I have a soccer player in the family, maybe I will finally start understanding soccer!

Maybe.

But don't hold your breath.

Shalu

 Since our arrival back in Taiwan, the ministry in Shalu has been silent. That all came to an end last weekend. Chinese public schools were about to begin and this was the last weekend before the high school students' pressured filled lives were about to begin. Carl and Michael decided a time of basketball was needed to reconnect with the guys in the Ark Fellowship.

The afternoon began with a short English lesson on basketball words and phrases.

This subject was right up Carl's alley. Or should I say court?

We then headed over to the local school where others joined us for friendly games of basketball.

While the men finished their games, Anna took me over to their soon-to-be new house. The house is larger and more suited to the ministry work they feel God is calling them to. While the first two levels will be used for Michael's cram school and the Ark Fellowship, their family will live in the top two. I personally fell in love with the roof's living space. 

To increase this outdoor space, another level was added. I didn't even know that was possible. 

What an amazing idea. This top level is higher than most of the surrounding buildings. The 360 degree views gave a bird's eye view of life in a Taiwanese city.

As a passing thunderstorm brought cooler breezes, Anna prepared a Taiwanese barbecue.

Steps up to the upper level provide a perfect spot for a sink and storage,
 as well as a roof over the washing machine!

It was a wonderful evening of fellowship, not just with current participants of the Ark Fellowship, but also with some who have graduated and are now furthering their education in college. Friendships were renewed. New friendships began. 

Please join us in prayer as Michael and Anna prepare to move into their new home. They await government approval on the facilities to be used as a school. They have a great burden to reach the youth of Taiwan with the love of Jesus Christ! Pray for peace, patience, and wisdom as they seek out God's plans. 

Happy Moon Festival

 Happy Moon Festival

Every time I stepped outside my house in the evenings this weekend, one thing, or rather one smell has prevailed....

Barbecue!

That alone paired up with the full,  lovely moon is enough for anyone who has lived in Taiwan for any amount of time to know that the Mid-Autumn Festival or more commonly called Moon Festival has arrived.

We were naive our first year. Standing out on our seventh floor balcony, we could see all these families seated on stools hunched over their small grills, or more  commonly referred to here, barbecues. For hours they gathered, grilled, ate, and generally just hung out together. Moon Festival is a time for families to gather and enjoy each other's company. 

Last year our friends, Michael and Anna, took us to a huge neighborhood barbecue. So huge an entire street was blocked off to accommodate all the families  and their friends barbecuing. You may remember my post a year ago. You know, the one where Michael made me get up on a stage and sing Country Roads. THAT didn't happen this year!

This evening as Carl and I strolled past gathering friends and misty grilling smoke, the moon shone brightly for all to gaze upon and admire.

 It reminded me of a shirt I bought for Jacob many years ago. On the front was a large moon with the words Be the Moon. The back of the shirt held the clincher.... 

Reflect the Son.

I was actually thinking about that shirt the other day as I prayed before leaving for school. So often in today's culture, we are bombarded with an  its-all-about-me attitude. 

Look how smart I am.

Look how beautiful I am.

Look how athletic I am.

Look how popular I am.

Look how rich I am.

At one point or another, we all have become wrapped up in being who we want to be.

But should that really be our goal?

Should we rather want God's pure love, joy, peace, patience, wisdom to reflect from us?

Shouldn't that be the goal, the target, of our lives? 

The moon is beautiful, especially tonight, but it is not so within itself.

Its beauty is in reflecting the true source of light- the sun.

How about you? 

Are you reflecting the Son?

That's my prayer as I head into another week of teaching!

  

It's a Good Problem

So after attending the same church for over twenty years for me, twenty-three for Carl, and  for our kids, their entire lives,  the thought of finding a new place of worship when we moved to Taiwan was slightly daunting.

 Faith Assembly in London was (and continues to be) more than a just church to us- its family. The worship, the pastor, the people, all were an integral part of our life. How do you go about rebuilding that in a new and strange land?

Our options were restricted by two things- lack of a vehicle large enough to carry six passengers and our inability to speak and understand Chinese.

But yet God provided. 

For the last twenty six months of our lives, we have been blessed by the ministry of House of Blessing. 

It was a great church because not only was it within walking distance, but it was bilingual. After we moved our second year, the walk was even shorter- less than five minutes!

But the church steadily developed a major problem- lack of space. The congregation grew and grew. Many Sundays found late comers no choice, but to stand. Leadership decided to alleviate the problem by having Children's Church independently in another room, thus freeing up seats for more adults. Not a perfect solution, but doable.

Recently, the problem became even more desperate when the air conditioning began to fail. Not to mention, the building's administrators informed the church of impending construction that would leave the children's program roomless. It soon became apparent to the leadership that the current situation was no longer the best use of the church's resources.

Thus began the search for another facility within the community, within the church's monthly budget.

Options were found and laid out to the congregation, which in turn individually voted.

The Dingus family no longer walks to church.

And we no longer sleep in on Sunday mornings.

House of Blessing now meets in a community center built by a christian company. It was built with the purpose to reach the community with the life giving message of Jesus Christ. A Chinese church also meets there. Their service begins at 10:30am, ours at 8:30am.

The drive takes only 8 minutes. 

Yesterday was our first service in the new location.

 The air conditioning worked.

Every one had a place to sit.

Empty chairs await new parishioners.

The children were able to rejoin the adults for a combined worship service.

Well worth the earlier start time and longer drive!

Yes, God provided.