Tamales

For the Feast of Our Lady of Guadelupe, we held a Sapienta Saturday. Erin Mone was out of town that week, and so the planning of it fell to me. One area of high-concern is food. Usually we have volunteers who plan the meals, make them, and then bring them over, to help feed the brothers and the retreatants.

Since it was a feast day, and more than that, a great Mexican feast day, the Kitchen Master decided he would make a Mexican feast. The menu included: Tamales, Flautas, and other deliciously Mexican dishes. To feed the crowds descending Br. Gabriel Maria intended to make 200 Tamales and he planned to make them two days before the retreat on a Thursday. I was among those recruited to help prepare them.

For those who have never experienced a Tamale, it starts with a Corn Husk (don’t eat the corn husk) a type of dough is made called Masa, which is made of corn flour and chicken stock broth, the Masa is spread thinly on the corn husk and a meat is added to the middle and then it’s folded up. The finished product is stacked in a pot and steamed.

The hard part is to spread the Masa thinly enough on the corn husk. After a few failed attempts I figured out how to get the Masa to smooth out. I spent 5 hours in the Brothers’ kitchen making Tamales, it was quite an adventure. Br. Gabriel Maria and Br. Paul of Tarsis called me the “trooper” since I stayed longer than anyone else to help them finish up.

On Saturday I also found myself rolling Flautas to help get everything ready for the meal while figuring out songs for Adoration. Making Tamales was quite an experience. It was fun to spend time in the kitchen telling stories and learning more about the brothers.

The meal turned out wonderfully and it was great fun to watch the teens try to figure out how to eat a tamale.

The below video is a clip from Disney's Zorro starring Guy Williams. During the adventure of making Tamales Br. Gabriel Maria and I discovered we shared an affinity for this show, so we spent some time singing the opening title song. In this particular episode, the song sung directly after the title is one about Tamales, which was also sung. It's easier to explain if you simply watch it. Don't feel compelled to watch the entire thing if you don't want.

Sports with the Sisters

Every other week Eagle Eye is invited to play sports with the Sisters. When it’s warm enough, we play basketball on the court next to the convent. So far it’s been quite an experience. The sisters are exceptionally fast and agile for Contemplative nuns.

When it’s an even match between Eaglets and sisters, the teams are split Sisters vs. Eaglets. We never stand a chance. When you’re up against Sr. Eme “The Bullet” Domini, Sr. Theresa Marine Core, Sr. Perpetual Motion and “The Guardian,” there really is no hope. It’s better when they disperse the Eaglets among the teams.

The French sisters are my favorite to play with, as they don’t quite have a concept of the rules yet. Their moves consist of double dribbling, travelling and shooting the ball either all the way over the hoop or into the rim. They’re getting better though.

For those who aren’t up on basketball terminology, there are points in the game where the possession of the basketball is contested. When two players from opposite teams both have a firm grip on the basketball for 5 seconds or more someone calls “Jump Ball.” In a normal game with referees, whistles and coaches Jump Balls are solved by first giving the ball to whoever didn’t have possession to begin the game, after that it rotates which team takes possession. (I apologize for the poor explanation.) When you play with the sisters it’s much less complicated. It starts out with Sr. Eme “The Bullet” Domini insisting that we play by the rules of the game. Then “The Guardian” comes over and says, “It’s more fun when you arm wrestle for it.”

On one such occasion, “The Guardian” won and it was decided that Sr. Marthe Rachel and I would arm wrestle for possession. Sr. Marthe Rachel, is one of the girls I’ve known since I was 16. Sr. Marthe Rachel has been sweeping and chopping vegetables with the sisters for 2 years now, and let me tell you, she has very well-toned forearms. Long-story short, I was roundly beaten by Sr. Marthe Rachel and she won the possession of the basketball.

There are so many other stories about sports with the sisters I could tell, but for the sake of length I’ll cut it off there. Needless to say, I count down the days until the next time we get to play with the Sisters.