bekahcubed 
~Thankful that my camera is back–and with it, all of my photos from the ladies retreat a couple of week’s ago. (I lost the camera on the way back. It was missing for over a week–which is a long time for ME to be without a camera.)
The ladies assemble before an “official” picture:
The girls at my table for dinner do fast faces (except for Joanna, who hadn’t yet learned the “fast face” concept.)
Visit Davene at Life on Sylvan Drive for more Simple Sunday posts.
According to an anecdote in Keeping a Journal by Trudi Strain Trueit, E.B. White (author of Charlotte’s Web and The Trumpet of the Swan) kept a journal for over 20 years, but requested that all his journals be destroyed after his death.
I can’t imagine doing such a thing–either destroying the journals or requesting that they be destroyed.
Perhaps I’m just a pack-rat, never wanting to throw anything away. I’d prefer to think that it’s the family historian and the teacher in me that wants to preserve journals.
Journals are the stories of our lives, written in our own words. They go beyond anecdotes to express our emotions, our priorities, our perceptions. Our journals show our real selves–the selves that perhaps no one has ever seen in entirety. Our journals show our growth, or our lack of growth. Our journals are little pieces of ourselves, preserved for our own reference and that of future generations.
At least that’s what I think.
My journals fill two crates. Over the past twelve or so years, I have filled at least forty notebooks with my thoughts, my feelings, my interactions. Some of my journals are fancy, with elaborate binding; others are simple wire bound notebooks with their covers long since torn off. But all of my journals contain something in common: a distilled drop of myself.
I can’t imagine destroying my journals, because my journals are a part of me. They tell the stories that have shaped my life, the hurts that have scarred me, the truth that has set me free.
I open a journal from spring of 2003 and read an account of my ongoing struggle to give God my husband. A journal from 2005 contains ideas for youth group games, for the officer position I held in my cooperative residence hall, and for a novel I was going to write (still might!) In a journal from late 2006, I wrote about discipleship, about the role of single women in the church, and about what God was speaking to me through the Word. One of last year’s journals asks why I am so restless. I quote: “Lord, why am I so restless? My journal makes it clear. A hundred thoughts whistling through my head.” That same journal contains the words to songs I sung in Mexico and reflections on Mexican religion, food, and teaching.
I rarely open one of my journals without learning something. I am reminded of the dark, dark times that God has brought me through. I am reminded of the mountain top experiences that peek/peak (how’s that for a pun?) through the valleys. I am reminded of lessons learned and battles won. I am reminded of the voice of God. I remember my goals and see how I’ve worked to accomplish them.
And a little part of me likes to think that others could learn something from these journals too. I like to think that maybe my boy struggles will someday help a girl who’s trying to put God first while desperately longing to be married. I like to think that the story of God’s faithfulness through my depression might inspire someone else to fix their eyes on Jesus–even when depression means they can’t see straight. I like to think that maybe my life, read as an open book, might be a story that could positively impact someone else’s life.
The impact of my journals might come from me re-reading, remembering, and sharing my stories verbally. I might lend them to a friend, like I did once for a friend who was going through relational difficulties. Perhaps they will be published after I die (Never let it be said that I DIDN’T have delusions of grandeur.) Or maybe they will be read by a great-granddaughter, who will be able to meet me for the first time through my hundred year old writings. But I intend for my journals to be kept, to be read, to be used.
My story is too important, too full of the grace of God, for my story to die. So is yours. So if you want your journals destroyed like E.B. White’s were, ask someone else to do it. I’m not willing that the pages of our testimonies be lost.
Today I’m thankful…
…for the sunshine that warmed the world and awoke my soul.
For some reason, Nebraska got a nice Indian summer today at the beginning of November. I’m not complaining!
…for the Hillsong United CD in my car.
I enjoyed worshiping on my way to class and back.
…for the calm of the library and the work I was able to complete there.
Last year, it seemed the library was always crazy loud with middle school students “hanging out” after school. Today, the library was quiet and I was able to get 20 papers graded.
…for Swedish meatballs with my folks.
When Mom and Dad invited me over for Swedish meatballs and pumpkin pie, I couldn’t refuse–even if I already had a stew in the crockpot. So I had a nice meal with them and I’ve got tomorrow’s lunch in the fridge!
…for God’s grace in the midst of my winter.
I have been overwhelmed by how well God has enabled me to cope during this past week. I’ve been able to push past the exhaustion that dogs my every step and really get some stuff accomplished. Who knows, maybe I’ll have to cancel that appointment with the NP next week for new depression meds! (I won’t be making any promises yet, though.)
What are you thankful for?
Or maybe I’m really glad to see that people still visit my website even when I’m not posting.
Or maybe it’s the seasonal affective disorder that the meds aren’t effectively treating.
Or maybe I’m a bit emotional because my uncle just died.
Or maybe I’m just smelling the onion left on my hands from the stew I threw together this afternoon.
Whatever the case, my eyes are a bit watery tonight.
Big things, little things, they cause my heart to swell.
Swell with thankfulness that my uncle is in heaven, worshiping freely with a whole mind (He died of brain cancer.)
Swell with sorrow as I think of his wife (my aunt), his children and grandchild, future grandchildren that will never meet him.
Swell with joy as I think of the woman who joined our Bible study tonight, a seeker, eager to experience God.
Swell with sadness as I think of her husband, raised in the church, but skeptical of the faith.
Swell with joy as I consider all the many things God, in His grace, has allowed me to accomplish today, despite the SAD.
Sigh with exhaustion as I consider all the things I have yet to accomplish in the upcoming days.
My day has been full, my heart is full, my eyes threaten to overflow.
God has been good and gracious throughout each of life’s ups and downs.
…a friend found my camera–the one I’ve been looking for for over a week. It has dozens of pictures from our ladies retreat on it–and I promised myself I wouldn’t buy another camera until I could afford a digital SLR. Now I won’t have to renege on my promise.
…I managed to get most of this morning’s lab reports graded and handed back today–with only a minimum of student complaints.
…I had a lovely conversation with a former classmate (under- and over-grad) who is now a lecturer in the department
Seasonal Affective Disorder still seems to be kicking my butt. I’m behind in nearly every class–not to mention laundry, cleaning, blogging, reading, bill paying, you name it. But every so often, I can see a glimmer of sunlight that promises that winter is not forever.
Thanks for praying–and please continue when you can. I need to find some time to talk to a medical practitioner about switching my meds–but right now just the thought of scheduling an appointment and discussing all this with a new doctor (since my teaching assistant insurance doesn’t pay for my regular PAs) is overwhelming.
No energy to write. No energy to read. No energy to do pretty much anything.
Pray for me if you have a chance. I feel like I’m fading into the Shadow.
Today I’m thankful…
…that I was able to spend the afternoon (and some of the morning) with Joanna, quilting
…that both of us managed to get a great deal done on our respective quilts
…that we had some wonderful conversation on books, jobs, friendship, dating, eHarmony, marriage, childbearing (of course, we WOULD discuss this topic!), and life in general
…that I am not an Asian elephant, who has a twenty-five month gestation period
…that I do not have foot long fingernails like the woman in the Guinness Book of World Records
…that I’m one of those “readers” with an insatiable curiosity for life–and a desire to try everything
…that at least ONE person thinks I have a sense of humor :-P
…that if there’s a guy out there who can fit my absolutely ridiculous standards, God knows it and has him ready (for just the right time)
…that if there’s no guy out there who can fit my absolutely ridiculous standards, God knows it and has me ready (to make the most of my singleness)
…that God knows what He’s doing with me, even if I don’t know what He’s doing with me
…that I have a great friend who’s traveling with me along this unknown path
I know some of you have been wigging out waiting for this–so I’ll put you out of your misery.
Artificial sweeteners? Safe or the devil’s spawn? It’s a great question that’s racing through the minds of nutrition conscious people everywhere. Dietitians are divided in their thoughts. There’s the “I can’t live without my Diet Pepsi” crowd (many of my nutrition professors in our “Pepsi” school fit into this group), and there’s the “artificial sweeteners are going to be the end of Western civilization as we know it” crowd (although this crowd tends to not mind the end of Western civilization in other contexts).
Because this issue is such a divisive one–and one with so many different opinions–I’m going to give you the facts and my general recommendations, and then let you decide for yourself.
First of all, it’s important to be aware of how additives to our food supply (such as artificial sweeteners) are regulated. According to the rules of the 1958 amendment to the Food, Drugs, and Cosmetics Act of 1938, no chemical additive can be used in food if it has been “found to induce cancer in man…or in animals.” This means that, at least as far as cancer is concerned, we’re home free. If additives have been found to cause cancer in humans or in lab animals AT ANY LEVELS of exposure, they may not be used in the American food supply.
Once the additive has been determined to not cause cancer or other genetic changes, experiments are done to determine what levels of the additive are safe. Researchers find the highest “dose” that causes no observable health effects and then decrease that 100 times to determine the “Allowable Daily Intake” or “ADI”.
See the below table nabbed from the Mayo Clinic for more information on the ADIs.
| Artificial sweetener | ADI* | Estimated ADI equivalent** | OK for cooking? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aspartame (NutraSweet, Equal) | 50 milligrams (mg) per kilogram (kg) | 18 to 19 cans of diet cola | No |
| Saccharin (Sweet’N Low, SugarTwin) | 5 mg per kg | 9 to 12 packets of sweetener | Yes |
| Acesulfame K (Sunett, Sweet One) | 15 mg per kg | 30 to 32 cans of diet lemon-lime soda*** | Yes |
| Sucralose (Splenda) | 5 mg per kg | 6 cans of diet cola*** | Yes |
*FDA-established acceptable daily intake (ADI) limit per kilogram (2.2 pounds) of body weight.
**Product-consumption equivalent for a person weighing 150 pounds (68 kilograms).
***These products usually contain more than one type of sweetener.
You can see that the ADI limit for a 150 lb individual ranges from 6 to 30 cans of diet soda per day (for the rest of your life). Since ADIs are established at 100x LESS than the highest exposure at which no observable health effects can be noted–the actual “danger level” is somewhere around 600 to 3000 cans worth of diet soda per day. I think it’s safe to say that none of us consume that much artificial sweetener.
So, based on FDA regulations, artificial sweeteners are safe for use at the levels in which they are present in the food system.
According to the National Cancer Institute’s fact sheet on artificial sweeteners, “there is no clear evidence that the artificial sweeteners available commercially in the United States are associated with cancer risk in humans.”
A few studies suggest correlations between artificial sweeteners and cancer risk, but these studies are generally poorly designed. It is unclear whether the vague results of these studies have any applicability. For example, a study suggested that national brain cancer rates rose as a result of the introduction of aspartame. However, the trend in rising rates began 8 years prior to the introduction of aspartame and occurred in a population unlikely to consume aspartame.
According to the ADA Evidence Analysis Library (which compiles and evaluates all of the best research on nutritional topics), “Limited research in humans, from peer reviewed journals, supports the safety of non-nutritive sweeteners for the general population. Considering the lack of high quality studies, continuing post-market surveillance of the safety of non-nutritive sweeteners is prudent.”
The phraseology is a bit bulky (that’s what happens when committees write a recommendation), but the gist is as such: “We don’t have a lot of good research in humans, but what we do have says that non-nutritive sweeteners are safe for the general population. However, since there isn’t a lot of good research available, we should continue watching for evidence one way or the other.”
How’s that for equivocation?
My opinion falls somewhere between the FDA’s “of course they’re safe”, the National Cancer Institute’s “all the studies that say they aren’t are flawed,” and ADA’s “we can’t really tell.”
I think that it is safe to believe that artificial sweeteners are unlikely to cause cancer. Because of the restrictions of the 1958 Delaney Clause, the FDA is required to conduct a great deal of research on the carcinogenic properties of potential food additives prior to approving them. The National Cancer Institute concurs that the artificial sweeteners that have been approved by FDA are unlikely to cause cancer.
However, only a limited body of research exists in other non-cancer areas of health. There are big blank holes in the research.
We do know, based on other chemicals, that most substances have dose-dependent responses. Even the best of things, when consumed in excess, can be toxic. Much of the nation was startled to learn of water intoxication in 2002 when Cassandra Killpack died after being force-fed excess quantities of water by her adoptive parents. Even water, the chemical most essential for life, is toxic in large quantities. On the other hand, in low doses, many potential toxic chemicals have little effect.
It makes sense that we should control the DOSES of artificial sweeteners that we consume. If you are close to or above the FDA ADIs, you might consider backing off on the artificial sweeteners.
Also, since children have lower body weights, they are more susceptible to overdosing on anything–so it makes sense to watch children’s intake more carefully. Pregnant and lactating mothers may want to watch their intake more carefully as well, as we do not know what effect any artificial sweeteners might have on rapidly growing babies.
So, my general recommendation, is that artificial sweeteners are likely to be safe when consumed in moderation. As a quick rule of thumb, I would say that if you are consuming more than three servings of foods made with artificial sweeteners (half the ADI for Splenda for a 150 lb individual), you might want to back off. But if you’re consuming less than three servings of artificial sweeteners in a day, the benefit of consuming fewer calories is probably greater than the risk of some unknown health issue.
Your B3,RD challenge for today (although today is nearing its end–sorry folks, this one took longer than I expected) is to calculate up approximately how much artificial sweetener you consume in an average day. Do you top my recommendations? How about the FDA’s?
The Daughter’s of the King ladies retreat was this last weekend, and it was fantastic.
The weekend was themed on Beth Moore’s Get out of that Pit. We watched some of Beth’s videos, heard from the book, heard teaching from the book, had small group times discussing the concepts found within, and had some personal time with God.
I’d already read the book, but the retreat was still pretty powerful. Especially the personal time with God. We had several questions to think through and pray through–but the great part was when God started talking. He told me what my pit is: self-PITy. He said, “You’re so busy longing for something different, something else, that you aren’t seeing what I’ve already given you. And, paradoxically, this has kept you from attaining your deepest desires. Wallowing in self-pity over how things HAVEN’T turned out as you expected is keeping you from enjoying the abundant life I have for you now and from anticipating the abundant life I have for your future.”
Yikes! But it’s so true. Knowing is half of the battle. Now, I’m daily practicing the steps Moore discussed for getting out of the pit: Cry out, Confess, Consent. And by God’s grace, I’m on my way out of the pit.
Apart from the wonderful time with God, I had a fantastic time with my girls. We swam Friday night–and stood in the shallow end of the pool singing all our favorite kiddie songs: “He’s a Peach of a Savior”, “I’m in the Lord’s Army”, and “The Hippo Song.” We cracked ourselves up with each different version–and decided that we were having so much fun that we NEEDED to share it with others. So we sang for everyone at our break Saturday morning.
On Saturday, we made leaf door hangers–one for each of us and some extras for the Thanksgiving baskets we’ll give out last month. I painted quite a few. I took pictures of quite a few really good ones–but somewhere between the ride home and Sunday morning, I lost my camera. So, I don’t have any pictures for now. (Hopefully I’ll find the camera soon.)
After we returned Saturday night, we had cheesecake at my Mom and Dad’s house for Mary’s birthday. I found a trivia question book that I’d given the family for Christmas years ago. At first I just threw the questions out to a couple of people, but by the end of the night, there were a dozen of us draped around the living room, trying to figure out which of the listed first ladies didn’t have “Smith” as their maiden name.
Sunday morning, I slept in–and then worked in the church nursery during the service. That’s when I really missed my camera. I only had three little kiddos in the nursery, but boy were they CUTE!
We closed the weekend with the movie “New in Town” (which I thoroughly enjoyed.)
It’s time for taking inventory of our stash of soon-to-be-read’s with 5 Minutes for Books’ monthly meme “What’s on Your Nightstand?”
Not surprisingly, my nightstand is full, packed with a wide variety of library (and a few privately owned!) books.
Adult Fiction
Young Adult/Children’s Fiction
Nonfiction
I also have a whole stack of children’s picture books by Verna Aardema. I’ve been in the process of reading every book in my local library for a little over 3 years now–but I’ve been doing it rather haphazardly. Carrie’s system of reading through the picture book section of her library struck my fancy, so I’ve started at the beginning–and the beginning is Aardema. I’ve only read two of her books thus far, but it appears that she generally retells African folk-tales. The pronunciation can be a bit tricky, but both stories I’ve read seem okay. Not great enough that I’d recommend them, but not bad enough that I’d recommend avoiding them. Just neutral.
Check out what other women are reading at 5 Minutes 4 Books