Mardi Gras

Today is Mardi Gras, which is French for Fat Tuesday - also called Shrove Tuesday, or Pancake Tuesday. We've come to the end of the season of Carnival, which starts on Epiphany (January 6) and ends at Lent. Fat Tuesday is always 47 days before Easter Sunday.

Agenda Today:

1. Word #5 - Discernment

2. Choose a theme for Lent

3. Set intentions for Lent

4. Prepare to fast from plastic

5. Make carnival corn soup

6. Make a screen mask

1. Word #5 - Discernment:

I'm reading a Pendle Hill pamphlet called Marking the Quaker Path: Seven Key Words Plus One, by Robert Griswold. This speaks to the condition of many Friends in my Meeting, who are ready to go deeper on this journey, and a large group of us are studying this booklet together this year. Last month I wrote about Discipline, and this month the word is Discernment.

Discernment is a process for slowing down before taking action. Griswold says, "...we know that actions and judgements based only on the intellect and information are not adequate. We have to act or judge without complete knowledge of all the possible consequences of what we do. So we need to take the time to bring our hearts and heads to a point of humility that makes unity of action possible."

Quakers practice discernment as a community, because none of us has the whole truth, and when we pool our resources, we get closer. At our best, we each subject our leadings, callings, proposed actions, ministries, services, and witnessing to a discernment process with others, because that makes room for something of God to be revealed.

This process of slowing down to discern a way forward is so revolutionary and counter to modern life that we often try to ignore it. It requires extreme patience, trust, and personal submission, to avoid "running before one's true Guide".

"Without making the effort to align our understanding with the discernment of other Friends, we are not Friends but only Quaker 'fellow travelers.' ... Until we can expose ourselves to the risks and challenges that come from opening ourselves to other Friends, our discernment will be slight and shallow."

2. Choose a theme for Lent:

My theme this year is Being Rooted in Creation: Being rooted means I have a secure sense of who I am and where I belong; I am firmly planted, sunk in, feet on the ground, and the earth is steady. Roots are our connection to the deeper places in our souls, to the past, and to the land we live on. 

To be rooted means I belong here, strong and grounded in Love, Truth, and Creation, solidly living in the Now, connected to the Divine Whole, and radiant in peace, in health and resilience. It means I belong in my home, my family, and in my community, I'm integrated and whole. 

At Lent I allow myself to be slow, simple, and thoughtful. I spend time each day in focused study and prayer. This Lent, I plan to study nature like I would prepare to visit a foreign country - learn the language of my bird and plant neighbors, and continue to explore my relationship to the natural world, the cycles of the seasons, and the history, culture, and ecosystem of my valley.

And I also observe Lent as a time of creative action, acting on my leading to become more rooted in Creation with small and large actions at home and in my community, and by sharing Medicine Art projects with my grandson and others.

3. Set intentions for Lent

My intentions this year are to:

• Read and Journal: I intend to dive into various web sites that offer information about nature, starting with Nature Mentor. The writer, Brian Mertins, offers a practical approach to awakening naturalist instincts by building skills with plants and birds.

• Explore resilience practices: I'm also reading the book "101 Mindful Ways to Build Resilience," which offers simple ideas for being more rooted in my body and mind.

• Take creative action: I'm going to act on my leading to become more rooted in Creation with small and large actions at home, in my garden, and in my community, and with writing and artwork.
• Fast: This year, like last year, I'm going to fast from all new plastic, and I'll continue to experiment with plastic alternatives.

4. Prepare to fast from plastic:

I've been writing a guide for a plastic fast, with one idea each day through the seven weeks of Lent, that I'm sharing with my Quaker and other earth care friends. This first week I've suggested some ways to prepare for a fast of this sort:

1. Meditate on the reasons for a plastic fast: Plastic is not biodegradable; no existing bacteria can break down plastic, so it cannot biodegrade like other organic materials. Instead it photodegrades: When plastics are exposed to the sun’s ultraviolet radiation for a long time, the polyethylene material becomes brittle and begins to crack, breaking into many tiny pieces. This process is estimated to take between 500 and 1000 years, but even when plastic breaks into smaller fragments it remains non-biodegradable and toxic for animals and humans.

 

Thousands of animals die every year from swallowing or choking on plastic items, or eating microplastics instead of food. So why do we continue to use disposable plastics, which will then become a problem for creatures and the Earth for hundreds of years?

2. Become mindful: In the days leading up to Ash Wednesday (February 22), take notice of the single-use plastic in your life. Perhaps keep a list on your refrigerator of any new plastics that enter your home: Plastic bread bags, yogurt containers, coffee cup lids, pill bottles, etc.

 

Another way to become mindful is to collect all your plastic waste in one place, and notice what accumulates. What are the sources of plastic waste that are produced by your particular way of living? This is not about feeling bad, but rather about noticing and being honest.

 

Or check out this plastic pollution calculator at Earthday.org

5. Make carnival corn soup with dumplings:

You can see three dumplings in the center of the bowl.

One place with a fantastic Carnival season is Trinidad and Tobago, an island republic in the southern Caribbean, off the coast of Venezuela. They celebrate for a month, with calypso music, steel band contests, limbo competitions, and fêtes (French for parties), and finish with street parades on Carnival Monday and Tuesday.

This is a favorite Trinidad carnival food, served by vendors outside of fêtes and street parties. It is one of the most delicious soups I've ever eaten.

Ingredients:

• 1 yellow onion
• 1 stick of celery
• 1 Tbsp. fresh thyme
• 1/8-c. fresh cilantro
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1 medium potato
• 1 carrot
• 2 Tbsp. oil
• red pepper flakes to taste
• 4 c. vegetable or chicken stock
• 1/4-c. dried yellow split peas
• Salt and black pepper, to taste
• can of cream-style corn

Dumplings:

• 1/2 c. flour
• 1/4 c. cornmeal
• 1-1/2 tsp. baking powder
• pinch of salt
• pinch of cayenne
• 2-3 Tbsp. water

Yield: about 6 servings-

1. Chop the onion, celery, fresh thyme, and cilantro. Mince the garlic. Also, peel and dice potato and carrot.

2. Heat oil in a soup pot. Add onion, garlic, carrot, and red pepper flakes. Sauté 3 minutes. Add the celery, potato, and thyme and cook five minutes more.

3. Add stock, yellow split peas, cilantro. and salt and pepper. Simmer partially covered for about 1 hour.

4. While the soup is simmering, make the dumplings: Combine flour, cornmeal, baking powder, a pinch of salt and a pinch cayenne, then gradually stir in just enough water to make a stiff dough. Knead until smooth then let sit for 10 minutes.

5. When the split peas are tender, add a can of cream-style corn.

6. Roll the dumpling dough into a thin log, and pinch off small pieces to roll into fat, short worms. Drop them into the soup, and wait until they rise to the surface. If the soup is too thick, add a little water.

6. Make a screen mask:
The Cajun celebration today in rural Louisiana is called the Courir (pronounced Coo-REER) de Mardi Gras, or the Mardi Gras Run. It’s a begging ritual, similar to Halloween; people ride around the countryside on horses, wearing masks and costumes, and beg for ingredients to make a gumbo.

My students with their screen masks.

The traditional disguise is a painted wire screen mask, a conical capuchon (pronounced cap-e-shon) hat, and a raggedy fringed shirt and pants. For instructions, look here.