Every Christmas Eve, the gloves (or should I say oven mitts) come off as my family prepares for the annual Christmas Cookie Competition – a battle between two households for one prize cookie jar. The rules are simple; make your finest cookie (no brownies/bars/cakes allowed) and may the best baker win! Cookies are judged based on taste and appearance, and extra points can be earned with a clever name or gimmick (think 2 foot Christmas tree made entirely of star-shaped cookies – 2nd place, 1999).
The competition starts long before December, however. All year long, we scour the pages of our favorite culinary magazines and Web sites looking for the perfect recipe. As the most-winning participant of this fine family tradition, I have come to learn a few things about what it takes to create a winning entry:
- Do Your Homework: The research phase is just as important as the day-of the competition. Once you feel sure that you have chosen the right recipe, you can begin preparations with the confidence of a winner!
- Know Your Audience: Every family has its fair share of picky eaters. Don’t count these folks out! Instead, cater to their palates. After all, it doesn’t do any good if only you like the ingredients in your cookie (you don’t get a vote).
- Execute Flawlessly: Time management and presentation are crucial! Don’t let yourself get behind the clock, forcing a sloppy final product. Make sure that you have all the proper tools and ingredients at your fingertips to ensure a smooth baking experience.
These same principles apply to the work we do here every day at Marina Maher Communications. I suppose you can’t help but let a certain amount of your work ethic seep into your home life!
Happy Holidays!
This week as the world mourned the death of Michael Jackson, I was overcome with emotion. Not only because I truly believe he was and will be the greatest entertainer to ever live, but because many years ago I had the privilege of working with him.
I spent the majority of my childhood and adolescence singing and recording voiceovers for television/radio commercials. To me, it was as normal an “after school activity” as playing soccer. My brother and sister sang as well, and so on most days when the school let out, we drove with our parents from Nutley, NJ to Manhattan to record.
One day in 1990s, we received a booking at The Hit Factory. It’s an unusual setting for a normal jingle session, so right away my family knew this was a different kind of job. With no further information provided, my brother, sister and I arrived and began to learn the song (which at the time had no lead vocal). The song was “Childhood” and we were to sing just that one word. While laying down the track, we saw a familiar figure on the other side of the glass, wearing a black hat over his long curly ponytail. That’s when my sister grabbed my hand and said, “It’s Michael Jackson.”
When the session was complete, we met with Michael. He was gracious, soft-spoken and genuinely interested in what our daily lives were like. Did we play sports? Did we go to camp? While we wanted to know how it felt to be Michael Jackson, he wanted nothing more than to know what it was like to be us average kids from the suburbs who went to school and ate dinner every night at the kitchen table with our families.
Michael Jackson was a musical genius. His personal life was certainly controversial. But what I learned most of all that day is that all people, no matter how famous or eccentric, want to be treated as human beings.
Last week I had the privilege of attending a celebratory event for an astounding children’s charity, Smile Train. The mission of this impressive organization is simple provide free facial cleft surgery for millions of impoverished children in developing nations. What started as a mere dream 10 years ago, has translated into over 500,000 surgeries in 75 of the world’s poorest countries.
Clefts are a significant problem in developing countries where there are millions of children who are suffering with this disfiguring birth defect. Most cannot eat or speak properly, aren’t allowed to attend school, and face lives filled with shame, isolation, pain and heartache.
Smile Train is not the most high-profile organization focused on the issue of clefts, but it has set itself apart by determining the most efficient approach to what is actually a very easily solved problem. Cleft surgery costs as little as $250 and lasts just 45 minutes, yet the procedure remains an impossibility for so many around the world. Rather than sending American doctors to perform these simple surgeries a few times a year, Smile Train provides free training and resources for local doctors across the globe. This strategy not only promotes self-sufficiency, but it means that Smile Train helps more children, in less time, for less money. Now, that’s something everyone can smile about!
Attending this event and hearing the inspirational voices of Smile Train’s leaders/supporters first-hand served as a reinvigorating reminder of why I enjoy the work we do in the healthcare practice at MMC. When people are passionate about their work, the possibilities are infinite and Smile Train is a shining example of this ideology. It doesn’t take an army to truly make a difference, just the enthusiasm of a few smart, dedicated people.
For more information about Smile Train or to make a donation, visit The Smile Train: The World’s Leading Cleft Lip and Cleft Palate Charity.
