I was invited to speak at Dakota State University in Madison a couple of weeks ago about American Indian Ethnobotany. I don’t know campus well and my sister-in-law who teaches there was kind enough to show me the buildings where I would be speaking. (Keep in mind she is not from Madison; also keep in mind that it is a town of 6500). As we drove back to her house, she said something to the effect of, “Well, there's the tour of your home town”.

Days later... it still makes me laugh. Thanks Casualene for always being so kind, generous and willing to support me in all my endeavors!

tHaNkSgIvInG 2009

Happy Thanksgiving

Don't let the sunshine and blue sky fool you...it was a cold day for our Thanksgiving Day FuN RuN! I am not sure when the family tradition started but I have always had memories of running together as a family. Some of us have gone on to break state records, run for BYU, run relays between cities, marathons, crazy day races and yes, even family reunion 5Ks while others of us wonder why we drag ourselves out of bed early on our holiday to walk across a corn field, crawl over a fence and then cross a clover field on a very cold morning to gather as family, extended family and church family to run the Meyer & Martin family FuN RuN. Ah, who am I kidding...we do it because it is fun and because we love it. Here are a few highlights from the day.



The kids spent the time playing while waiting for the Fun Run to begin.

On your mark, get set, GO!!! And we are off!

Aunt Casualene helped the girls make edible cornucopias for all the tables. Great Grandma couldn't celebrate the day with us but she sent the beautiful flowers in the background for us to enjoy.

The day was filled with family, fun, food, games, playing and reading.


HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

Memories I love

Memories that I love:

Adventures in Tonga; Reading Harry Potter in Auckland, New Zealand; Serving a mission in the California, Arcadia mission; Mission Companions; Friends; Brookings FHE “Pit” nights; Madison, SD; Enjoying the moments with the family; Adventures in the Corn Maze; National Tropical Botanical Garden; Rainbows; Ordering Travel Magazines; Australia; Ferries; Traveling; “People, people, people”; Mountain Roads; The Green Van; Summer Bike Rides to the Pool; Sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ; Laughing with Roommates and Friends; Plant Collecting; Riding in Bee Trucks; Uncontrollable Laughter Right Before Family Prayer; Nieces and Nephews; The World’s Most Dangerous Road, Bolivia; Turtle Impression in the L.A. Airport; Family Road Trips; Driving; Leaves Changing Color in the Fall; Random People on Mountain Roads; Cook’s Kitchen; Country Music; Barn Dances; Sunsets; Interviewing; the Madison Branch; the Seven Dwarfs Plus One Die; MBG; Weddings; Water Fights; Bachelor Pad Boys; Promenade; Listening to My Sisters Play the Piano; Picking up Paw Paws; Family Reunions; Provo, UT; Eagle Watching; Answers to Prayers; Girls’ Camp; Operation “Hog”; Toilet Paper; Peanut Butter and Car Door Handles; Benson Building Custodial; Africa; Sink Holes and Ticks; Plants because they are Amazing; Field trips with Dr. Tidwell; Family, family, family; Spring; Redwoods; Crater Lake; Marathon;

To name just a few.

Heartache filled with gratitude

J.B. Meyer, an employee at A.H. Meyer and Sons Inc. beeswax plant of Winfred, surveys the damage from a morning explosion and subsequent fire.
(Laura Wehde/Republic Photo)

http://www.madisondailyleader.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=20373751&BRD=1302&PAG=461&dept_id=181987&rfi=6

http://www.mitchellrepublic.com/event/group/group/News/

Memories of Clara Pederson: Clara was one of my mom’s favorite people. I would say she was my mom’s first friend when she moved to Madison. Clara enjoyed life and was very happy in finding joy in the journey. I remember when I was young she would babysit us when my parents went out of town. I remember that I would do anything she asked with cheerfulness because I didn’t want to displease her. (Unfortunately, I can’t say that cheerfulness was there when my mom asked me to do the same chores). As far as I know, Clara did not own a vehicle but would ride a 3-wheel bicycle everywhere or would walk. She was the best lefse maker around…maybe it was because she was 100% Norwegian. She was diagnosed with a brain tumor, received a blessing, and when she went back to her appointment the doctors could not find it. I once mentioned that experience to my mom, saying that Clara must have had such great faith. My mom shared that Clara’s faith was like the childlike faith we are asked to have. A couple of other reasons my mom loved her so much were because she did not have guile and she never said bad or negative things about other people. It is to this last sentence that my thoughts have turned to Clara of late. When I was in high school I would help Clara’s niece Ila who has MS. I loved taking Ila out in her wheel chair so she could enjoy the sunshine. There were times that we would visit Clara who only lived a few streets away. On one of those visits, Clara and I had a discussion about gossip. She shared with me that she did not feel that gossip was worth it, mentioning that gossip usually lead to someone’s unhappiness. I have thought about that conversation at different times in my life but have forgotten about it for a long time now. It has only been recently that I have been thinking about Clara’s lesson. I sometimes wonder as I have been trapped in gossip lately how my life would be different if I did not participate in it or when I hear things about myself, finding a way to let it go. How would the relationships that I have with family and friends be different? I am grateful for the reminder of Clara’s lesson and hope that I can follow it better.

"Oscar" ...love at first sight...

The state of Missouri is trying to get the word out about how they are helping first time homebuyers...here's some information from Senator McCaskill's webpage before watching the video.

"McCaskill Productions unveils today its inaugural project, Looking for Compatibility with Your First Home, available on computers nationwide via YouTube. Shot in St. Louis featuring two locals, it’s the heartwarming story of a young couple falling in love their first home but struggling to afford the American Dream. A subtle spoof on the common eHarmony commercials, the video is both touching and informative.

In an attempt to raise awareness, the video highlights a program that many other Missourians qualify for but too few have pursued – a tax credit for first time homebuyers established under the stimulus and a Missouri program that allows people to tap in to those funds now rather than waiting until tax filing next year.

The $8,000 tax credit was created as part of the stimulus bill, but the credit can only be claimed by a homebuyer after the purchase of the home, usually at tax filing time. The Missouri Housing and Development Commission (MHDC) introduced a program to accompany this federal tax credit that advances the tax credit as a loan, with the agreement that the homebuyer will pay it back when their federal tax refund arrives."





My favorite part about the video is the couple...I work with Alyse. Ahhh... it makes the video that much better when you know the people in it. Alyse shared this with me this afternoon...it's been a few days since I have had such a good laugh...especially when Joe pops up at the end to agree with the princess comment.

MY LAST DAY

Sunday I caught the 11:00pm Cruz de Sol bus to Lima…about an 8½ hours bus ride. It was a little more rocky than usual so I spent most of the night “bus sick”. Gonzalo had some documents he had to sign at the German embassy so he came to Lima as well. We spent the morning on the grounds of the Lima LDS Temple. It was Gonzalo’s first time seeing the temple and it was a great to be able to talk to him and answer his questions regarding Moroni and temples in general.

YouTube - Mormon Messages: Why Mormons Build Temples

I had my last Peruvian meal…for now…and it was good. No sandwich de queso…instead, rice, lentils and fried fish! The afternoon was spent in the Inca and Indian Markets…yes, I went shopping. I told myself that I wasn’t going to…but the souvenirs stores just seemed to call out my name…buy me, buy me…actually, I went to just look at first and to get a couple of things but I found myself being pulled in by the shopkeepers…I have a hard time saying no when they are trying soooo hard to sell. Yes, I am now the proud owner of many Peruvian products that I don’t really have room for or need.

Peru was great. I enjoyed becoming more familiar with the plants that we are working with from the medicinal markets. As always, for me it really is about ethnobotany, the study of cultures and how they use the plants! It makes the plants come to life to learn how they have benefitted various communities.

My challenge to everyone is to learn the name of one plant in the area you live in (that you don’t already know) and learn how the plant was or is used.

Experiencing Peru

While celebrating a birthday at the Torres family home my first week in Peru, I was asked if I knew how to make TORTA or CAKE. The family was very excited to find out that I knew how to make dessert…but I failed to tell them that Betty Crocker is my best friend and making things from scratch does not happen too often in my life. Because of my lack of being fluent in Spanish… although head nods and big smiles can go a long way… I found out a couple of weeks later that I had promised to make cake for the family and was asked when I was going to do it. In very much my style, with a bazillion other things that also had to be completed before leaving Peru, I somehow squeezed in buying ingredients for the brownies late Friday night. I did find a Betty Crocker brownie mix and was very tempted to buy that instead…but I held out and bought the ingredients to make them from scratch. (Thanks Laura for the recipe)! I am always amazed how my broken Spanish can bring on wonderful, even exciting conversations…even in the baking isle of the grocery store regarding the best cocoa to use for torta…too bad I didn’t understand 95% of the conversation but we both seemed to walk away happy and I had cocoa in my basket. Well, the BIG MOMENT finally arrived! We didn’t have the correct size pan so the brownies turned into a cake…and because of oven temperature challenges…it came out a little burnt but overall, we had a lot of fun and we made TORTA!

The Torres family the night of the birthday party.

Rosa Maria and I with our "brownies"

Jerry and Hermana Torres

My friend Mario also had a birthday while I was in Peru. I was able to participate in his celebration with his family and friends. I admit, we bought the torta from the bakery…and it was delicious. I think I already mentioned this but Mario is an incredible botanist/biologist and I could not have gotten everything done in Peru without his help. But that is not all, both he and his wife are incredible, kind, generous, patient, wonderful people!!

Mario and his family

(only three of the girls are his, the others are nieces)

One afternoon, I spent the SIESTA with my friend Julio, learning about and tasting many of the delicious fruits grown here. I met Julio at church the first time I came to Peru. Although he chastised me for not coming back to Peru with a better knowledge of Spanish, he was still willing to take some time and teach me the names of the fruits in Spanish.

Julio and his wife

Working in the herbarium... What can I say? My experiences in Peru could not have been possible without these plants to identify!

Where I spend my time

The Huanchaco bus:

The University where I spend time in the HERBARIUM:


The University where I spend time in the lab with the students and where most of the chemical testing will be done:


Laundry…I love clean clothes…


My favorite place to buy water and crackers


Taxi!!


My room at the Hostal de Huanchaco

FAMILY

Aunt Michele said it tonight on her blog..."families are where it is at". MY FAMILY IS AWESOME!!! (Both immediate and extended). I love that so many of us blog because it has been a great way to stay connected.

I have been wearing my T-shirt from our last family reunion here in Peru. A couple of people have commented about it, asking what the bee on my shirt means to my family. It has been fun to share with them about our beekeeping background.

The other reason family has been on my mind is because my sister has become a consultant for Heritage Makers...basically I way to do family history via digital books, photo albums and so on. She just completed a cookbook for my niece Kelsi (her daughter) who is graduating this year from high school and headed to college. It was fun to flip through the cookbook and see the family photos in there....especially of my grandparents, who were and are great examples of faith and generosity. She has it posted on her blog: http://www.protectmyhistory.blogspot.com/

Families are the best.