The Sabbath

5/6/11

I hate getting sick.  It always comes at what seems to be the most inopportune time.  It kicks into my insecurities because I have to let people down by calling in sick or missing appointments.  This time was really a bummer.  My Dad was visiting and I was taking a whole day off to spend with him.  Roy and I planned this great trip to a little artsy town up in the mountains that he would have so enjoyed.  That morning I woke up sick.  Not the kind of sick you can disregard and plow through with a good face; no, the kind of sick that cannot be ignored by anyone around you.  Back to bed I went, disappointed and miserable.  All day it went the same and we were unable to take our trip.  And then I received the best present ever.  My Dad sat on my bed and we talked; we talked about how he was feeling after Georgana’s death and how he is pushing through.  How he has found a greater God through it all and how he wants to know even more about Him.  We talked about my book, Eden’s Song and how proud he was of what Roy and I are doing.   We talked in between trips to the restroom, ice water and naps. 

The next day Roy took him to the airport amidst tears and hugs.  I was forced to stay in bed another day.  I kept thinking of all these things I needed to get done, but it just wasn’t going to happen and I finally succumbed to the fact that I was bound to rest.  When Roy came home from work, we talked.  We talked about what a great visit we had with Dad, where our next trip to Africa would be, what the newspaper said.  He napped before his next shift and I found myself thinking about things from ‘when did my stomach get so round’ to praying for a friend who lost her husband 3 years ago and is wondering if she will meet someone else soon.  I realized that there are very few days that I just allow thoughts to go unbidden in and out of my mind; tossing the ones that mean nothing, pondering insightful discoveries and handing God those too big for me. 

It became a Sabbath.  I never take a Sabbath – I know that is unbiblical, but frankly with a 5 day workweek, laundry, house cleaning, home groups, writing a new book and Eden’s Song there isn’t much time to stop.  But God knows.  God knows there are days that just need to be for building relationships and taking a bath without hurry; days to throw out the distractions and refocus on what He has called us to do.  These last 2 days opened my eyes to the fact that there is more to life than a continuous flow of ‘work’ even if we love what we are doing.  That we really do need to ‘stop and smell the roses’ once in awhile to appreciate the beauty around us enabling us to share it with others. 

I pray you find your Sabbath.

Clean Cookstoves - the Solar cookstove

The cookit is a panel style solar cooker that was developed in 1994 by a volunteer group of engineers and solar cooks associated with Solar Cookers International. (http://www.solarcookers.org/) It was based on a design by French scientist Roger Bernard. The CooKit is made of cardboard and foil shaped to reflect maximum sunlight onto a black cooking pot that converts sunlight into thermal (heat) energy. A heat-resistant bag (or similar transparent cover) surrounds the pot, acting like a greenhouse by allowing sunlight to hit the pot and prevent heat from escaping. It weighs half a kilogram and folds to the size of a large book for easy transport.

It is capable of cooking most foods in several hours, and retains nutrients that are lost in cooking over higher and direct heat. The Cookit has been beneficial to displaced persons in refugee camps where firewood was scarce and there was abundant sunshine.

Most solar cookers work on the basic principle: Sunlight is converted to heat energy, that is retained for cooking. Sunlight is the "fuel." A solar cooker needs an outdoor spot that is sunny for several hours and protected from strong wind, and where food will be safe. Dark surfaces get very hot in sunlight, whereas light surfaces don't, therefore black or dark pots should be used; best in dark, shallow, thin metal pots with dark, tight-fitting lids to hold in heat and moisture. A transparent “heat trap” around the dark pot lets in the sunlight, and keeps the heat that is produced from escaping. For the Coookit a clear, heat-resistant plastic bag or large inverted glass bowl is used.

The advantages are the low cost, the easy transportability; they are light and compact; the fact that for most areas in the developing world Cookits can be manufactured locally, thus creating jobs, local ownership and production while reducing the need for large amounts of petrol in transportation.

It is also an advantage that the food is cooked slowly, as it allows for extra hours where women are not required to tend a fire or search for firewood. These added hours can be used for other income generating activities, such as working on ones farm and increase produce; working with other women to initiate a poultry farm; pig farming or other entrepreneurial, artisan activities.

The disadvantage of the Cookit is that it is made with cardboard, which if exposed to regular moisture and water, will damage it and it will no longer be functional. If it is kept out of water and well maintained, it will last longer.

The requirement of the plastic bag is also an obstacle in that these bags can be reused, but will eventually need to be replaced. Again, the number of times these bags can be reused varies on the specifics of each household. When a plastic bag is poked or ripped, it is no longer viable. In areas where water is scarce, if a pot spills while removing it from the bag, cleaning the bag can be difficult and reduce its length of use. These plastic bags and the need to consistently replace them is perhaps one of the main disadvantages of this solar cooker. SCI and other organizations and engineers are working to expand our research to develop and improve this CooKit, while keeping the cost low and increasing the durability and problems with the plastic bags.

Want to try the CooKit for yourself? Download instructions to build your own: http://saveone.net/#1365880/Cookit-Solar-Cookstove-An-Affordable-Solution-that-Doesn-t-Need-Fuel!

Roy & I were thrilled to see one of these at work in Kenya when we visited our friends at HEART.  You can also check out the Mind the Gap page on www.edenssong.org.

The Solution: Modern Cleaner Cookstoves

We will follow this report this week and post the 'solutions' that may be helpful to you!  Bless you - we love you guys.

News from “Be the Change” - http://saveone.net

 Indoor smoke from cooking, know as the “Kitchen Killer”, accounts for 1.6 million deaths annually and 2.7% of global disease. Throughout the week we will be looking at different designs for improved cookstoves that can help play a role in improving the health in half the people around the world.

The World Health Organization has found that indoor air pollution from cooking is one of the top ten global health risks.
More than three billion people worldwide depend on solid fuels, including biomass (wood, dung and agricultural residues) and coal, to meet their most basic energy needs. The inefficient burning of solid fuels on an open fire or traditional stove indoors creates a dangerous cocktail of hundreds of pollutants, primarily carbon monoxide and small particles, but also nitrogen oxides, benzene, butadiene, formaldehyde, polyaromatic hydrocarbons and many other health-damaging chemicals. Day in day out, and for hours at a time, women and their small children breathe in amounts of smoke equivalent to consuming two packs of cigarettes per day.

Inhaling indoor smoke doubles the risk of pneumonia and other acute infections of the lower respiratory tract among children under five years of age. Women exposed to indoor smoke are three times more likely to suffer from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), such as chronic bronchitis or emphysema, than women who cook with electricity, gas or other cleaner fuels. And coal use doubles the risk of lung cancer, particularly among women.

Yet, these families are faced with an impossible dilemma: don't cook with solid fuels, or don't eat a cooked meal. 

Practical solutions to the indoor smoke problem must reduce pollution levels substantially to curb disease. Switching from wood, dung or charcoal to more efficient modern fuels, such as kerosene, LPG and biogas, brings about the largest reductions in indoor smoke. Also changing behaviors can also reduce exposure to indoor smoke. Many alternative cookers are currently on the market, with more popping up every day. 

Alternative Clean Cookers Include:
Briquettes and Pellets
Solar Cookers
Biogas
Liquified Petroleum Gas
Natural Gas 
Solar Cookers
Modern Biofuels 
Electric