A good reminder :)

Got this post from my friend Eva's FB status. It's a good reminder for all of us :)

“The plain fact is that the planet does not need more successful people. But it does desperately need more peacemakers, healers, restorers, storytellers, and lovers of every kind. It needs people who live well in their places. It needs people of moral courage willing to join the fight to make the world habitable and humane. And these qualities have little to do with success as we have defined it.”

― David Orr, Ecological Literacy

Graham Hill- Weekday Vegetarians

 

 

I've been doing it too :)

Just a thought...

Went to one of the hospital here in Jakarta this morning with my friends Zack & Maya. We spent some time there with the kids (who are less fortunate than we are) at the children's cancer ward.. This is Alikha (one of the kids who stayed there), she's 11th month old...already got 1 chemotherapy...9 more to go. She got tumor on her blood vessels.

I might be wrong...but for me, instead of complaining about traffic, Jakarta, religious differences, traffic and so on....those things are nothing compare to what she (they) feels.

Little things do count...if we can help, why not?  I have some links here and you can check CountMeIn website if you want to help others and you can always volunteer too.

Like  Mother Theresa said "We can't do great things in this life. We can only do small things with great love." 

6 Ways Kids' Yoga Differs From Adult Yoga

Pic by me

I like this article by Sarah Herrington from Mind Body Green. I'll copy paste it for you.

"Kids' yoga is definitely different than adult yoga. And here's what teaching kids yoga is really like:

1. Kids' Yoga Isn’t Quiet: Sure, there are quiet moments. From my experience, kids really love Savasana and will be especially quiet and still if they know a foot rub is coming, or are listening to a favorite song or story. We often begin class with a collective OM or an “OM Song.” We often sing Sun Salutation instructions together to help us remember the poses and to keep us all moving and at the same time. But when it's time to practice the poses of the day, there can be chatting, laughing, down dog barks and cat-cow meow-moos. Kids are full of life and personality, and your class will be too! Don’t expect to just hear breathing.

2. Kids Don’t Sweat Like Adults, But Things Can Get Grubby: It wasn’t until I completed my first adult teacher training that this fact hit me hard on the head (or in the palms of my asana-adjusting hands): adults can sweat a lot in yoga,but kids generally don’t. There’s no need for towels or mopping up the floor after an active class. But an active kids' class can stir up other things, like germs. I sometimes hand out scented hand sanitizer as a “treat” to awesome yogis before or after class. Sometimes we do a “Karma Yoga” project and collectively wipe down the mats. You’d be surprised how much kids love to help out and keeping the space tidy together is an awesome way to teach kindness and impart the spirit of the Yamas, or social values, to kids. Kids aren’t afraid to roll around and get dirty, and though its great to encourage that adventurous spirit you don’t want to necessarily encourage the actual “dirt” bit.

3. Classroom Management Is Key: While it's fun to keep kids' yoga classes playful, a definite structure has to be in place to keep everyone safe and learning. You may want to choose class guidelines together and then collectively sign your own yoga classroom contract so the rules are self-generated and not just imparted. It's a great idea to have a “Peace Place” where a kid yogi can take a break if one is needed instead of disrupting the class. And as the teacher its important to remember that strong and loving boundaries are part of yoga. Its a great practice of Patanjali’s sthira sukham asanam, or the idea that it takes both steadiness and softness to achieve yoga. See if you can supply both for your kid students.

4. Poses Are Better in Twos, or Threes: Kid yogis love to work together. While in adult classes everyone keeps their eyes to themselves (for the most part) and their bodies on their own mats, kids like to link up their trees into forests and their chair and tabletop poses into complete kitchen sets with their friends. Kids love to learn collaboratively, and it's a great opportunity to practice cooperation, friendliness, and compassion -- which are all big yoga lessons.

5. Kids Keep it Real: You will know immediately if your kids' class is working or not. Kids keep it very real, and will tell you what they love and don’t love about your class. Don’t take it personally, take it as information. In fact, I’ve gotten so used to kids' honesty that I find it a bit unnerving to look out into a class of adults practicing with straight, unreadable, faces!  I’m used to smiles or tongues sticking out, laughter or tears, and just knowing exactly what my kid students are feeling.

6. It's Not Playtime: Kids need to stay challenged to grow, and they learn quickly. Challenge them by teaching the Sanskrit names of poses, if appropriate, and teach the differences between Surya Namaskar A and B. Talk about similarities and differences between poses. Do a book report on famous yogis, or draw and decorate mandalas. Kids' yoga doesn’t need to be a playtime free-for-all, and learning a lot can be a lot of fun.

Two key words in kids' yoga are Love and Listening. If you love yoga, that will shine through and the ever-perceptive kids will read that in you and respond. If you listen to your students and stay flexible in giving what is needed at the moment, you will have a class where kids both learn a lot and have a lot of fun. And hopefully, seeds for future yoga exploration will be planted!  And you will grow, too."

By Sarah Herrington from Mind Body Green.

Eggplant Mozzarella Parmesan

Got the recipe from this site. 

Ingredients:

• About 1.2 kilos tomatoes
• About 1.5 kilos of eggplants
• 400 grams Mozzarella
• 8-10 tablespoons of Parmigiano Reggiano cheese
• 2 garlic cloves
• About ½ cup chopped onions
• Some basil sprigs
• About ¾ to 1 cup of olive oil (this includes oil for frying)
• Salt and pepper to taste.

How to make: 

- Slice eggplants lengthwise (about 4-5 mm thickness). Eggplants should not be sliced too thin to prevent them from burning while frying. On the contrary, if eggplants are cut too thick, they will absorb too much oil.

- Toss eggplants with salt and place them in a colander. The secret to a liquid free recipe is draining enough water from eggplants. Some recipes suggest to let eggplants drain for about 1 hour. I let them drain overnight.

- According to Neapolitan tradition, eggplants should only be fried in olive oil, long enough to acquire an intense golden brown color. Fry 4 to 5 slices at a time. In other Italian regions, eggplants are previously dipped in egg batter or/and flour before frying.

- Once fried, eggplants are transferred to a plate and covered with paper towels to drain excess oil. Make sure to eliminate excess oil: there is nothing worse than a Parmigiana drowned in oil.

- To prepare the sauce, the most recommended type of tomatoes are fresh, ripe San Marzano or Piccadilly. Many Italian cooks consider these kind of “plum” tomatoes to be the best sauce tomatoes.

In a pot, boil water and add tomatoes, and blanche for about 1 – 2 minutes, the necessary time to soften them. The more time you boil tomatoes in water, the more water they absorb.

- Once blanched, tomatoes are passed through a hand-held vegetable mill.

- This useful tool besides from speeding up the process by easily removing skin and seeds (which determines acidity in tomato sauce) from tomatoes, it produces a sweeter and better quality of sauce

- In a saucepan, add 2-3 tablespoons of olive oil, and sliced garlic. Add chopped onions and sauté for about 30 seconds. Add sauce and simmer for about 1 hour or until sauce is thickened.

- Add some basil leaves and salt and pepper to taste.

- Arrange eggplant slices in the bottom of a baking dish, overlapping slightly if necessary. Spread over tomato sauce. Cover with Parmigiano Reggiano. Continue layering with remaining eggplant, sauce, Mozzarella, Parmigiano Reggiano, and basil. Bake at 200° C uncovered, until cheese is melted and golden, about 30-40 minutes.

- As for the purple sweet potato, I just roasted it with olive oil and herbs (rosemary, oregano.

Miles Davis Quartet - My Funny Valentine

One of my fave of all time :)

Cat shaped pre-school :)

I love cats! Well I love animals basicly. And looking at this cat shaped pre-school...oh wow...all I can say is...cool, cuteness!!

Got these pics from Pinterest and Magazine.

15 ways to say goodbye to a child :)

Got this cute words from Pinterest :)