Bananas? Now That's Bananas!

The banana. A popular, yellow, crescent moon-shaped fruit that is botanically a berry and loved by young children. Bananas are very cool and full of “yummy” potassium, but I won’t go on and on about this sticky fruit. I’m actually here to talk about banana peels. You must be thinking, “What?” If you’re not, then please think ‘What?’ because I’m about to tell you things you may not know.

Now, most of us think of silly cartoons like Tom and Jerry when we think of banana peels. Often times, one of the characters (like Jerry) eats a banana, carelessly throws the peel onto the floor, then the enemy (Tom) comes running and slips on it. But most of us know how to dispose of a banana peel properly...right?

According to research, banana peels have lots of use. Instead of throwing away the yellow “garbage”, use it in your daily lives. Guess what, kids? Banana peels can help soothe and take away the itchiness of bug bites, rashes, and poison ivy. Moms and dads, when you’re grilling dinner -- steak, chicken, any kind of meat -- place a banana peel on top of the meat to make it more tender and juicy. Having a crock pot meal? Throw a banana peel in there to keep the meat from drying out.

Hey, gardeners everywhere! Wrap a banana peel around your early tomatoes to absorb nutrients. Use banana peels in compost, too! They break down easily and add nutrients to soil. If you like lots of wildlife in your garden, put a banana peel on a high surface to attract birds, butterflies, bees, and wasps. (Personally, I wouldn’t do that. Bees and wasps create annoying nests on the outer walls of your house.)

Tired of worn leather? Polish it with the pithy side (the inner side) of a banana peel. Afterwards, rub with a cloth so there is no sticky residual. Like shiny stuff? Clean silver with the mixture of a banana peel and water.

Cock-a-doodle-doo! You can feed animals like pigs, chickens, rabbits, and sheep with dry banana peels mixed in with their normal food. But guess what? Not only can animals eat banana peels, but you can, too! BOOM. You heard me right! You can eat a banana peel if you clean off the pesticides. Boil it for 10 minutes or put it through a juicer to enjoy lots of extra nutrients and fiber.

However, there is more to this sticky story. God made everything, including bananas. Even though banana peels to us are worth nothing, God made them for a reason. Just imagine bananas without their peels. They would rot more easily. They would leave your fingers really sticky. They would get eaten by other creatures. Banana peels are really useful. And the fact that we can do even more things with banana peels is amazing. So, the next time you eat a banana, think of how God made everything for a perfect purpose!

Also, for more information about banana peels, visit http://www.sustainableamerica.org/blog/bananas/.

Cinquain Poems

Cinquain poems are simply five lines of words with syllables that are written in this order: two syllables, then four, six, eight, and then two again. The last line of the poem is usually a similar word to the first line of the poem (two syllables), but is not required. Cinquain poems are fun to write and can be written by anyone. We hope you enjoy these poems written by Claire and Valerie.

Braces.
I want them off!
I don’t like my braces.
But they make my teeth very straight.
Oh well.


Disney.
It is so cool!
Lots of people go there.
But wear walking shoes at Disney.
Mickey.


Patience.
I don’t have it.
I need more of it now.
But I will have to wait for it.
Bummer.


Soda.
It is bubbly.
I like it with ice cubes.
But soda is not good for you.
Fizzy.

Cell phones.
We like cell phones.
We tap on our cell phones.
We get distracted by cell phones.
Texting.

My mom.
My mom is great!
She is an awesome mom.

She likes to make poems with me.

Mommy.

Cookies.
They are chewy.
I really like cookies.
Peanut butter is the best kind!
Dessert.


Thank you for reading the poems!

Control

By Claire

Control. There are so many things in the world that we wish we had control over, but we don’t. We wish that we had control over what other people are doing. We wish we had control over what is going on in the world -- the ignorance, the hate, the sin...everything that appears to have control over us.  If we all had control, would our lives really be better?

Think about it - if we all had control, we would mess up everything. We would make all the wrong decisions, think proudly of ourselves more than anyone else, and be very rude to everyone around us. Everyone would be unhappy. Parents would be frustrated with their headstrong children, kids would be angry with their bossy friends, and teachers would be furious with their students. If all of us had control, everything would be ruined.

There will always be things that we won’t have control over. Sometimes, all we can do is ask God to forgive us for wanting to have that control...for trying to handle the situation by ourselves instead of Him. But God knows what’s best for us and the problems we may have. So, don't worry -- God is in control.

Emotions

Emotions

By Claire

Doubt. Fear. Hate. Disappointment. These are all common feelings to have. But why do we feel them? Can’t we just be happy all the time? Most of us would agree that it’s very hard to always have a smile on our faces. It’s hard to be happy with ourselves and what we do. What if I told you that having these feelings hurts God? Crazy, right?  Let me explain.

Imagine painting a picture of a little girl. Imagine that this little girl has green eyes and long and tangled brown hair. She’s tall for her age, and freckles cover her face. So you’ve painted this beautiful picture, and you’re very proud of it. You love it. It’s perfect just the way it is. Now imagine that the little girl came to life. But she complains about her freckles and how they looked bad. She doesn’t like her hair, and she thinks her eyes are ugly. “I hate myself,” she says. “I wish I were a different person.” Stop right there. Think. We say that about ourselves sometimes, too. We aren’t happy with the way we are. I don’t know about you, but I would be offended if someone called my picture ugly. Not good enough. Not smart or pretty. That’s exactly what happened. Your picture came to life and said, “You made me ugly. You didn’t make me good enough. I don’t like myself.”

With God, it’s the same thing. Sometimes we call His creation (you and I) ugly, not good enough, and unlovable.  These emotions and feelings get in our way and hurt Him even when we don’t realize it. So, don’t judge yourself. Accept who you are because God created you, and you are beautiful just the way you are.  

(P.S. Think of Bruno Mars! - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LjhCEhWiKXk)

Holes

By Claire

All was silent in the house.

My parents and I are in the sun room, avoiding the natural scatter of family around the house. My dad is on his new laptop, my mom on the keyboard, and me, knitting -- until now. (It’s almost impossible to knit and type at the same time…) All you can hear is the birds chirping outside, the empty pounding of the keys on the piano (my mom has headphones on, so there’s no sound), the tapping of the keys on my dad’s laptop, and the occasional clanking of my knitting needles. This was a little unusual for a Sunday, especially because we were all off in our own little worlds.

Now, let me tell you, sometimes, I don’t even care what I knit. I just start with ten or fifteen stitches and go. But, with skinny needles and skinny yarn, options are limited - you can’t start big knitting projects. When I knit, sometimes I feel like I’m just a lost stitch in the knitting. Lost stitches create big, unwanted holes in your knitting that are very noticeable. When I feel like a lost stitch, I don’t feel important or helpful. But when I feel like a regular hole in the knitting (because there’s always holes), I feel important. Believe it or not, the little holes make up the finished product. In most of our perspectives, holes are just holes. But are they really? Now, I can either can feel like a lost stitch in the knitting that does nothing or I can feel like a hole that does do something -- like be helpful. 

Instead of sitting on a couch in the sun room with my parents feeling like a lost stitch in my knitting, I can go out and do something important. I can be the hole that helps make up the finished product. Now, Sunday is the typical day to go to church, right? Go. Don’t feel like a lost stitch in the knitting, laying there, sticking out like a sore thumb. Be like the hole that actually does something.