|
"At
times our own light goes out and is rekindled by a
spark from another person.
Each of us has cause to think with deep gratitude of
those who have lighted the flame within us."
~~Albert Schweitzer
|

|
Hi all,
I hope those in the States had a very happy Thanksgiving!
I had a great time with my family and very much enjoyed a four
day weekend. As I reflected on what I'm grateful for, I
got to thinking about all the Dyelanders and Friends have to be
thankful for. Rather than do the standard "Emma is
thankful for..." and "Andrew is grateful for..." list, I decided
to just do an update on various of the Dyelanders and
Friends. As I've said before, the dog I adopted a year
ago, Leo, is a bit of a handful and getting him used to a life
indoors put a serious damper on my writing time. I hope
that's coming to an end and, when the stories do start up again,
I thought it'd be good to have some idea of where the characters
are as of November 2017. This list isn't exhaustive but
it's a start... and will be continued in two weeks.
God bless,
Jenni
An Update on the Dyelanders and
Friends- November 2017
Belle- Now nearly four years old, Belle is
as active and talkative as ever. She continues to attend
classes Below, taught by her Appa Vincent, and remains devoted
to her many pets. She's still very clingy with her
parents but is causing them some angst by asking for a baby
brother or sister.
Vincent- While he still loves teaching,
Vincent has had to give up some subjects in favor of
spending time with Father. The elder Jacob, having
suffered repeated bouts of pneumonia, has become
increasingly fragile and is preparing his son to completely
take over as the leader of the Tunnels. Vincent is
known to escape his sadness over his pending parting with
Father by surrounding himself with his grandchildren at
every opportunity.
Catherine- While keeping a close eye on her husband, Catherine
remains devoted to her work at the Phoenix Inn. She's
formed a partnership with the Chrysalis and often recommends
her guests to Amber-Marie as potential hires when they're
ready to become independent again.
Jacob- Now nearly ten, Jacob is becoming
more independent. While this sometimes horrifies
Catherine, Vincent takes it in stride, remembering his own
pre-teen years. Jacob ventures into the deeper caverns
with some regularity, meditating there and focusing on his
art. He also spends a great deal of time around Owen
who he sees as a mentor. Like his father, Jacob is
making a point of spending extra time with his grandfather.
Jacob/Father- He's often overheard speaking aloud to "my
Lady." Even when in pain or discomfort, Father has a
peaceful demeanor. He's regularly visited by his Tunnel
family, mostly just to chat and reminisce and less often for
counsel. In his quiet moments alone, Father prays the
Anglican rosary and thinks both of his family in the Tunnels
and his family waiting for him in Heaven.
Max and Rose- While both are still
taking classes, they're more settled into life and
marriage. Max occasionally travels for his internship
as a trauma counselor with the Army. However, he and
Rose try to never be parted for very long... something which
Max's Dad and Maja very much appreciate since that also
means they're never separated from their eldest for long,
either. Currently, Max and Rose are planning a very
special Christmas surprise for Andrew and JenniAnn.
Shelby- Now thirteen, Shelby has become a caring, thoughtful,
creative, and intelligent young lady. She's very glad to
have her brother, Asher, back in the Tunnels where he's become
a teacher. Shelby still loves staying at Willowveil and
babying her little sister, Belle. While she remains very
fond of the love stories surrounding her, particularly that of
her adoptive parents, and sometimes jots drafts of stories
about them, Shelby is becoming aware that she's different from
most of her peers. While many of the other Tunnel boys
and girls her age are making googly eyes at each other and
pairing up (however briefly), Shelby is uninterested.
Violeta- Andrew's protege continues to
enjoy going to college with her best friend, Ivy.
Violeta occasionally joins Andrew on brief assignments but
God takes care to ensure they never interfere with her
school work. Now in her third year of college,
Violeta's subject material is a little more mature and
sometimes makes her uncomfortable. On occasion, Joshua
allows her to become "mini-Violeta" and she spends that time
being coddled by JenniAnn and, sometimes, Andrew.
Ivy and Sy- Much to Ivy's delight, Sy joined her at Fordham
University. Though he's a year behind Ivy and Violeta,
they sometimes have core classes together. Ivy and Sy
are the de facto leaders of their study group which continues
to meet at Cora's house, much to the delight of Isra and
Behnam who adore having the intellectuals about. If the
others notice when Ivy or Sy snuggle little Aurora Al-Mitra
and make eyes at each other, they politely refrain from
teasing them.
Zeke and Diana- With two kids in college, the Wilsons are in
no hurry to have little Manny grow up. Thankfully, the
three year old is quite content to be the apple of his
parents' and siblings' eyes. Diana is loving being
able to run down to the Tunnels' nursery during her breaks
at school so she can spend time with Manny. Zeke
continues to serve as a deacon at his church and as the
chaplain at True Light. He checks in with his old
friend, Vincent, at least a couple of times a week.
Zeke recognizes that it's easier for Vincent to confide in
him about his fears and worries regarding leading the
Tunnels and his sadness over the loss facing him.
And... that was a lot shorter than I intended which means
the next edition will be much longer. I think I
finally caught the bug that's been going around and needed
to lay down.
Cranberry Almond Pudding/Dip Recipe...
just because
So this has absolutely nothing to do
with John or Andrew or Dyeland... well, maybe I can
stretch and say it's related to the latter as JenniAnn no
doubt made it for the gang there. This is a recipe I
came up with spur-of-the-moment on Thanksgiving morning
when I realized I had a can of cranberry sauce that was
soon to expire. I think it'd also be yummy for
Christmas or any late autumn/winter celebration. So
here goes...
Ingredients:
1 can- 14 oz jellied cranberry sauce
1 packet- 4.6 oz instant vanilla pudding mix
1 cup milk (I used skim)
1/2 cup whipped cream a la Cool Whip
A few sprinkles of cinnamon
Sliced almonds
Sweetened coconut flakes
In a large bowl, mix the first four ingredients until
combined. You can play around with the cream and
milk measurements to get it to a texture you like.
Add in the cinnamon to taste. A little goes a long
way. If nut allergies aren't a concern, mix in some
sliced almonds. I didn't measure those out. I
just tossed some in until I liked how they were disbursed
in the pudding/dip. Unfortunately, the color may be
a bit muddled and not entirely attractive. So hide
it! Pour a layer of coconut in a pan, roughly
mirroring the size of the surface of your dip. Toast
the flakes briefly, let it cool, and then pour it over the
dip. And that's it!
It can be served as a pudding or, paired with graham
crackers, shortbread, animal crackers, or the like it can
be used as a sweet dip. Enjoy!
This newsletter is dedicated to John Dye for giving us
so many great performances to be thankful for.
JABB
Portal
JABB
TOC
JABB
505
(Photo
Credits: The photographs used on
this page are from Touched by
an Angel and owned by CBS
Productions, Caroline Productions,
and Moon Water Productions. They are
not being used to seek profit.)