Hello Blog Friends! Alleluia, Christ is Risen!
This week, although pleasantly full, has not been quite as packed as the previous one. Easter Day began with an early walk with Mr. T (when I saw my second robin of the year, hence the fuzzy photo above!). After which I hurried home and iced the Tropic Aroma Cake and then connected with a small gathering of Pod members, where we discussed the, previously circulated, sermon and hymn selections, followed by a time of prayer. After that I watched the Easter Eucharist from Canterbury and took Communion with a pre-consecrated wafer.
The afternoon included a lovely online organ recital, watched while Easter dinner was slow-simmering on the stove. Later on, I tuned into Solemn Evensong, also from Canterbury. Throughout the day it was special to receive a number of messages and e-cards from friends across the world; all in all a holy and blessed Eastertide.
Easter Monday (technically a holiday!) Eli came for a visit and debrief of the Lenten Mini-Retreat and several other friends dropped by to exchange gifts and share tea or coffee and cake!
Thus, the rest of the week has required several overtime shifts, in order to get back on track with the completion of the program manual, responding to a full Inbox of emails and other bits of both Day Camps and Office work. Tomorrow is CTM’s Annual General Meeting so the template of the Minutes had to be prepared and reminders sent out to all voting members.
Wednesday afternoon I was just settling down to write a detailed email; to Mae Anne, about expectations for the service project, planned for the late June, Day Camp at Promised Church when my mobile “binged” with a message from Sarah to say that she and her husband ,Alex, were in the area and could they stop by to pick up their daughter’s birthday gift, which I had wrapped and ready as Serena’a birthday is today. Of course I said “yes” and immediately lassoed Thomason ,put the kettle on and dashed to the freezer to pull out some cookies.
By the time they parked outside, the tea was steeping and, although the cookies were still pretty cold, they were greatly appreciated! It made a nice break from the laptop and I still had time to get the email composed before ending off for the day.
That evening Jessica was able to send back the second draft of the Program Manual, so portions of both Thursday and yesterday were devoted to, yet another, proofreading of the 83- page document.
Thursday, while eating a quick lunch, it was great to have a short FaceTime chat with Brenda. She lives in Halifax and so it was early afternoon for her, the best time to talk while her youngest has a nap! I got to hear all about her family’s Easter celebrations and then dived back into proofing.
Today, part of this morning has been taken up with the Diocesan “Time of Prayer”. This event was organised by the Spiritual Directors group to prepare the Synod delegates for the Electoral Synod, which will be taking place next Saturday, May 3rd. The event started (on Zoom) at 10am so, prior to it, the first items of my Saturday Bake were popped in the oven, and thankfully nothing was burned, as I was able to turn off my camera and sneak in the kitchen whenever the timer rang!
This afternoon should see the last of the Manual pages proofread so, perhaps sometime next week, the final copy can be uploaded to the Resource Package.
This seems like a good point at which to end off with our recipe. For today’s Bake, a pan of my Mum’s date squares was on the list. It is a long time since I made a batch of them, as organic dates are pricey and hard to come by but, happily, my most recent “panier des fruits” included a box of them. Here is her recipe, do give them a try!
Date Squares
- ¾ lb. pitted dates, cut up
- 6 Tbsps. raw cane sugar
- 2/3 cup water
- 3 Tbsps. lemon juice
- 1 ½ cups unbleached flour
- ½ tsp. each, baking soda & sea salt
- ¾ cup butter
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 2 sups old fashioned rolled oats
Combine dates, water and sugar, bring to a boil and simmer over low heat for 10 minutes, stirring frequently, cool, then stir in lemon juice. Whisk together the flour, soda and salt. Cream the butter, add brown sugar and beat until light and fluffy. Stir in the dry ingredients, then add the oats. Press ½ the mixture into a greased 9×12 pan, top with the date mixture and spread evenly. Sprinkle with remaining oat mixture and pat down lightly. Bake in preheated 375ºF oven for 30 minutes. Cool and cut into squares. Makes about 24 pieces. These freeze well, if there are any leftovers!