last night we had our best little dinner party ever. our household plus three celebrated daniel's birthday with amazing sushi that he mostly made himself. julianna (our wonderful, kind emotionally balanced housemate) stated it well when she said, "i don't know if i'm at home or at haiku." really, it was that good. after dinner, we took a little walk around our neighborhood, which is increasingly about the only place i would want to live in columbus. julianna showed us the community garden a block from our house, and we tasted all of the herbs that were growing there. did you know that tarragon tastes like anise and makes your tongue numb? in other news, i've been extremely stressed out this week - 15 page paper, emergency placements at work, etc. the cool thing, though, is that we finally found my girl who ran away when she was 13 (she turned 14 last month) after she was missing for four months, and she's finally in a safe place. i got to spend most of my day with her yesterday, and although it added to my chaos, it's one of those things that reminds me why i have such a hard time thinking of leaving this job. there has been a lot of talk of orphans at our church lately - we've started our very own orphanage in cambodia with asia's hope, and it's very, very exciting. but yesterday reminded me that it's ok that i'm not actually across the ocean at our orphanage in person, because i have my very own orphans here in columbus who need me. this girl is a true orphan - her mother and little brother died in a house fire, and her father died of cancer. she has no relatives left to take her because she has a lot of emotional and behavioral issues (as pretty much any 14 year old in her situation would.) i've been with her through five homes. it's strange to think that i'm one of the only constants in one girl's life. that's not a reflection of my goodness or anything, but a reflection of how powerful this job can be at times... anyway, i have the day off tomorrow. hooplah! my parents are coming to town for the annual meeting of the conservative mennonite conference. i grew up spending a lot of weekends at "conference," and this week has really had me thinking about my identity as a mennonite. the lovely erica wrote earlier this week about being a third culture kid. i will write more about this soon. until then, i'm looking forward to seeing people i haven't seen for years, and showing off my nose ring and tattoo. (just kidding, mom!) now i have a few more things to catch up on at work before i can go home. happy weekend!

happy, happy birthday to my love, daniel christopher fox! there are so many things i could say about daniel that i'm not even sure where to begin. suffice it to say that i've chosen well in marrying the right man for me. i love you, baby!

a couple of days late, this is the source of the letter i've pasted below, from a citizen of mumbai, india. Not-so-Dear Terrorist, Even if you are not reading this we don't care. Time and again you tried to disturb us and disrupt our life - killing innocent civilians by planting bombs in trains, buses and cars. You have tried hard to bring death and destruction, cause panic and fear and create communal disharmony but every time you were disgustingly unsuccessful. Do you know how we pass our life in Mumbai? How much it takes for us to earn that single rupee? If you wanted to give us a shock then we are sorry to say that you failed miserably in your ulterior motives. Better look elsewhere, not here. We are not Hindus and Muslims or Gujaratis and Marathis or Punjabis and Bengaliies. Nor do we distinguish ourselves as owners or workers, govt. employees or private employees. WE ARE MUMBAIKERS (Bombay-ites, if you like). We will not allow you to disrupt our life like this. On the last few occasions when you struck (including the 7 deadly blasts in a single day killing over 250 people and injuring over 500 in 1993), we went to work next day in full strength. This time we cleared everything within a few hours and were back to normal - the vendors placing their next order, businessmen finalizing the next deals and the office workers rushing to catch the next train. (Yes the same train you targeted) Fathom this: Within 3 hours of the blasts, long queues of blood donating volunteers were seen outside various hospital, where most of the injured were admitted. By 12 midnight, the hospital had to issue a notification that blood banks were full and they didn't require any more blood. The next day, attendance at schools and office was close to 100%, trains & buses were packed to the brim, the crowds were back. The city has simply dusted itself off and moved one - perhaps with greater vigor. We are Mumbaikers and we live like brothers in times like this. So, do not dare to threaten us with your crackers. The spirit of Mumbai is very strong and can not be harmed. i lived in mumbai for six months. one of the train stations that was targeted was the same one i commuted to and from work on every day. six months isn't a long time, but it was long enough to make mumbai one of the cities that i consider "home." there is a lot i could say about stoicism and living life in the midst of tragedy, but for now i'll let the letter speak for itself, and be proud that i was able to be a mumbaiker once, even if for a short time. (thanks to andrew for pointing me to this letter.)

love is in the air

fmaily portrait, circa 1980
Originally uploaded by amy joy.

32 years ago today, my parents got married. happy anniversary, andy and joy! this is only picture i have on my computer that is close to that time. aren't we a happy (albeit poorly lit) family? seriously, my parents did an amazing job of maintaining stability in our home, and their marriage has been a great example of commitment for me. thank you for that, mom and dad. here's to 32 more years!

my parents are coming to visit at the end of the month. i'm exceptionally excited about it.

in other marriage-related news, my dear sister-in-law, ashley, is engaged! congratulations ashley and jerry! i'm so glad that both of them are a part of our family. they are both wonderful, mature, kind people, and i have no doubt that their marriage will be strong and stable and fun. i love you guys!

so, exciting family events are happening. there are other exciting things happening, too, but i think a big anniversary and a new engagement deserve their very own post tonight.