Perhaps Love ...

Despite the fact that I normally roll my eyes at cliches, I couldn't help but deck the house with this quote for Valentine's Day. I know I know, love isn't all a person needs. But isn't it fascinating how everyone is on this quest to find love (in many forms), yet we can never quite pin it down? It's a universal feeling yet so personal and unique in each and every relationship.

For V-day last year I made a little board where E and I can post notes to each other. You simply fill a frame with a piece of paper that says "I love you because ..." and then you can write with erasable marker on the glass, changing the message daily, monthly, whenever. Of course I'm usually the one to put my gift to use, but every once in a while Evan will partake. "I love you because ... you keep me organized and tidy" has popped up on more than one occasion, haha. Although this is a fun little game, the truth is I don't think I can honestly fill in the blank because there is an element of mystery to why someone loves someone else, and I like to keep it that way.

E's morning message to me!

As a true Pearson girl I naturally know all of John Denver's rocky-mountain-high songs. But he also sang a lesser-known tune with Placido Damingo (another of my dad's favorites!) called Perhaps Love. I've heard it so many times I never really paused to listen to the words until last weekend when my dad performed the song at a school event. I like how this song points to the fact that we don't know what love is and that everyone has a different definition. Perhaps it's this or perhaps it's like that metaphor, and some say this and some say that ... but in the end we tie that love to a person and that becomes our definition. Give it a read (or a listen!):

Perhaps Love
Perhaps love is like a resting place, a shelter from the storm
it exists to give you comfort, it is there to keep you warm
and in those times of trouble, when you are most alone, the memory of love will bring you home.

Perhaps love is like a window, perhaps an open door
it invites you to come closer, it want to show you more
and even if you lose yourself and don't know what to do, the memory of love will see you through.

Oh, love to some is like a cloud, to some as strong as steel
for some a way of living, for some a way to feel
and some say love is holding on and some say letting go,
some say love is everything, and some say they don't know.

Perhaps love is like the ocean, full of conflict, full of pain,
Like a fire when its cold outside or thunder when it rains
If I should live forever and all my dreams come true
My memories of love will be of you.

And some say love is holding on and some say letting go,
Some say love is everything and some say they don't know.

Perhaps love is like the ocean, full of conflict, full of change,
Like a fire when its cold outside or thunder when it rains,
If I should live forever and all my dreams come true
My memories of love will be of you.

Watch and listen to my dad sing this song here! (download the video or audio-only file.) The woman he sings with is my mom's coworker at the school, and my mom is the one on the piano!

On Minnesota Public Radio this morning they did a story about online dating. I have mixed feelings about the world of online dating, because even though I think it's a great tool in this modern day world (where it's increasingly hard to meet people naturally), I can't ignore the fact that if I had used an online dating service I never would have ended up with Evan. Although we share similar life goals we are opposites in many ways. But I'm so thankful I'm with someone who ruffles my feathers a bit. We have to work on our relationship daily, which in the end makes us stronger. Go read the story (or listen!) and see if you can find my comment down the page (hint: there's a little picture icon of me). They read my comment on air!

My Valentine : )

I'm off to orchestra rehearsal tonight so not much of a special night for me. But I think we have some raspberry chocolate gelato we're going to crack into later!

Happy Valentine's Day!

A LOOK BACK

V-Day 2011 and a tasty recipe

V-Day 2009

C is for Chocolate

Nothing says *love* like a bowl of gooey chocolate. Right? Well ok. Maybe gooey doesn't exactly scream romantic, and I typically roll my eyes at cliché's, especially ones about love and chocolate around Valentine's Day. You see, I don't usually buy into all of the commercialized Valentine's Day "stuff", but I do enjoy spending the day with people I love, celebrating love in general (not just romantic love, but love for family, friends, and life), and I do love chocolate, so the added tradition of whipping up something wonderful and chocolate-y for dessert works out well (like you need an excuse to do that!). So without further ado, let me introduce you to my new true love favorite dessert: 

Molten Chocolate Lava Cake

Oops, looks like someone was too excited to dig in to snap a photo first!

Luckily, I had some extras set aside to indulge in on Feb. 15, 16, and 17th ... 

Yea, I know, this photo isn't spectacular without the dollop of whipped cream on top. And you have to just imagine the chocolate "lava" inside. Thankfully my sister Kirsten, who shared this wonderful recipe with me, was on her A-game the night she served these lava cakes up to some dinner guests and snapped a before photo that gives the cake justice. (Although I believe Scott, her boyfriend, was the chef behind these beauties?)

And now for the goods ... the recipe!

Molten Chocolate Lava Cake

Serves 6, Prep Time: 15 minutes, Total Time: 40 minutes

4 Tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temp, plus more for muffin tins

1/3 cup granulated sugar, plus more for muffin tins

3 large eggs

1/3 cup all-purpose flour

1/3 teaspoon salt

8 ounces melted bittersweet chocolate, melted (we used Baker's Semi-Sweet baking chocolate squares and melted it in the microwave)

Confectioners sugar, for dusting

Whipped cream, for serving (optional) or vanilla ice cream

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Generously butter 6 cups of a standard muffin tin. Dust with granulated sugar, and tap out excess. Set aside. (or we just sprayed 6 little ramekins and left out the sugar dusting since we ate right out of the tins)

2. In a bowl (stand mixer or hand mixer) cream the butter and granulated sugar until fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. With the mixer on low, beat in the flour and salt until just combined (I always cut back on salt). Beat in the chocolate (do not over-mix). Divide the batter evenly among the prepared muffin cups.

3. Place the muffin tin (or little ramekins) on a baking sheet; bake just until the tops of the cakes no longer jiggle when the pan is lightly shaken, 12 to 14 minutes. Remove from the oven; let stand for 10 minutes.

4. To serve, turn the cakes, and place on serving plates, top sides up. (Or we just ate right out of the ramekins). Dust with confectioners sugar and serve with whipped cream, if desired. Evan likes his lava cakes with vanilla ice cream to tone down the chocolate intensity. I'm not a huge fan of mixing hot and cold together (hurts my teeth!) so I prefer the whipped cream.

Original recipe from Everyday Food: Great Food Fast, by Martha Stewart Living Magazine

See what we were up to last Valentine's Day weekend! Hint: replace a mountain of chocolate with a mountain of snow ...  ; )

Puppy Love

SPOILER ALERT! Don't read this if you haven't yet read or watched "Marley and Me"!

Evan and I finally got around to watching "Marley and Me" over the weekend. Although we knew the basic plot before hitting play -- well, I did, Evan knew the entire story since he read the book last fall before the movie even came out in theaters -- we still found ourselves frequently hitting pause throughout the flick to discuss various aspects of the story developing on screen. Yes, it is just a simple tale (no pun intended!) of a family dog during the first few chapters of a couple's marriage. But Marley's humbled companionship and loyalty, even though spotted with typical "puppy behavior" throughout his adult years, made us think deeper into the role of dogs in Man's life and how much we have to learn from these creatures.

I know it was supposed to be a tear-jerker, but for some reason I couldn't quite get there... probably because I was thinking too philosophically throughout the ending. So when other viewers were drawing parallels to their own lives and pets, conjuring up old memories, and summoning the pool of tears that is apt to follow, I was in my "thinking cloud" pondering WHY it is so sad when it is time to say goodbye to a pet. Beyond the obvious grief that comes when anyone -- pet or person -- leaves our world, in the case of a pet there is something else in play.

Humans communicate through actions and body language just like our furry friends, but we also rely on spoken language to address and dissect issues and confirm and acknowledge feelings. There's a reason "I love you" has become (or perhaps always has been) the three most important words in our language. Yes, at the core actions do speak louder than words and too often these words of affirmation are used as a mask to cover actions that are never there. But can you imagine a world where the words "I love you" didn't exist? We, as humans, cling to these words for reassurance, for confirmation that in case our actions haven't always spoken truly, in case we have injured or faulted another as we are so prone to do, at the core we really do love.

But at the bed of a dying pet our need for verbal communication and affirmation of feelings goes wanting. We can tell our own "Marleys" how sorry we are, how they have become members of the family, and how much they will be missed, but the response and acknowledgement we crave confirming the reception of our words will never come; we never truly know if our message has been received.

Luckily, none of this matters in the eyes of our dogs; to them actions always speak louder than words and the pain of this sad exchange is something only the owner must endure. For dogs, a life well lived, filled with loyalty and respect, always trumps whatever words we throw their way (of course most of them understand a few words and commands, and they do respond to tone of voice). In the end our "Marleys" can teach us to become better humans with strengthened, honest actions accompanying our verbal "I love you"s; the perfect "bilingual" combination. If you don't have your own "Marley" yet, it's time to go shopping; a little "puppy love" sure can go a long way.

MAX, my "Marley"

Photos courtesy of John Pearson

News for the Valentine's Day Scrooge

I have never been able to understand those Valentine's Day Scrooges out there. I guess if you have had bad love-life luck as of late it is permissible to role your eyes at the rose stands and chocolate displays. But I have recently encountered people who are blessed to be surrounded by love and happiness and still grumble about the day. These people are forgetting the underlying reason for celebration: love. And I don't just mean romantic love. Some of my earliest (and best!) memories of Valentine's Day are of discovering a new pair of socks waiting on my plate at the dinner table -- a token of love from mom. I agree, the commercialism and Hallmark holiday is a little over the top.. ok, sickening. Yes, I too avert my eyes and speed walk past the seasonal aisle in Target so I don't have to look at the copious amounts of heart-shaped chocolates and teddy-bears that will soon enter the lives of another couple for a moment's proof of love before being tossed aside. Hallmark wins. Ba-humbug. But the underlying excuse to show love for the people, the world, and simply life around you is too good to pass up. Hallmark and commercialism hasn't stopped us from celebrating the true meaning of Christmas, even though for many, gifts and goodies is all that Christmas is about. A store can stock pile on tacky Christmas gifts and and pass it off as "getting in the christmas spirit". But poor Vday has no long-standing Biblical story and truly WAS invented - there is no denying it is a Hallmark holiday. But that doesn't mean we can't make it something more. So do something fun this weekend to celebrate your love for the people, the world and life around you! I am proud to say Evan and I will be celebrating Valentine's Day this year by making a nice home-cooked meal (as of yet to be determined), playing scrabble and dominoes into the night, and perhaps venturing out to a Shakespeare play on Sunday. And by the way, I'm truly not that righteous - I enjoy my share of the commercial holiday; I'm betting we'll even eat some chocolate : )