The sunshine fell off the deck

unnamed-7This is a blogpost for all of you who realized a dream. The dream of a home. I am longing for a deliberate decision about where and how to live. A place to grow and to create. We are at a point where (almost) everything is possible but nothing seems to take us any further. What helped/motivated you to make the move, the jump, the dive, the shift? Tell me, I am curious! Our apartment is too small, the Bay Area so expensive, my job situation is all up in the air and Raj is mainly frustrated and wants to simplify. Continue reading

Sometimes life is sweet

Sommer in Deutschland

I am surrounded by sweetness and exhaustion. I decided that this blog post will be a little compilation of some precious moments during my time in Germany. I won’t write about being worn out by the quantity of things I thought I had to do; like renovating my apartment, working with asylum seekers, organizing a festival, tutoring English, teaching German, being part of the Freiburg CI festival and all that with a little one year old on the side. This article will be about 5 times sweetness!

Sweet #1
This morning little Sequoia walked (yes, he walks!) to my side of the bed and said his first word:”Hi!” I think this was one of the most heart warming experiences I’ve ever had.

Sweet #2
One evening at the cloudjam, I was sitting in one corner of the room, observing dancing people and holding my son. I saw and felt how everything in the room became alive and present. The dance, the violin and the focus was flowing easeful together. I was quiet, content and at the right place. I was touched by the reason why I organized this little sparkly festival. I understood that my motivation was to bring all my homes together: Münsingen, the town where I grew up, the Rhineland, where I lived for almost 10 years and the Bay Area, the place where I am living now. All 3 homes were united through my 4th home –  the dance. Just writing this gives me goose bumps. All homes were represented by dear friends, old and new and it made me so tremendously happy that my brother was part of it by cooking deliciously for the whole dance crowd!
An article was written about our Jam by the local newspaper! : http://www.swp.de/muensingen/lokales/muensingen/Persoenlicher-Augenblick;art5701,3357339

All pictures courtesy of Norbert Mörchen.

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“Buch über die Liebe” Chapter 2

Buch über die Liebe

2 years ago Rajendra and I had our “Schwuppdiwupp” wedding. Last year we celebrated our 1st anniversary in a redwood forest in the Oakland hills. It was a beautiful, memorable and really touching celebration. Lots of friends and family came and contributed in one way or the other. In retrospect, I believe that it was such a wonderful day, because we let it pass by without too much planning and with the trust in the power of improvisation. On that day petals of beauty could unfold in their full potential. I could almost feel the love pouring down on all of us from the top of the redwood trees that embraced us. For me it was almost too sweet to be true. As some of you probably know, if things get too beautiful, I am very suspicious if they are real. But that day really was.

This year, we drove up there again. Only the two of us without an agenda. We just had packed an apple, a pocket knife, peanuts and a bottle of pomegranate sparkling cider. We climbed up on one of the benches, stood there looking at each other and toasted.  The toast sounded like a little tingeling. A sound that said everything that needed to be said in that moment. The sun tickled us through the trees and one of the old ravens, that we already met last year, flew past us.

The last two years were full of life, a lot of unexpected moments of joy, love and pain. A learning experience I didn’t want to miss, including all the people that were with me, supported me and sometimes helped me pulling the cart through the swamp. I much better understand the preciousness of opening up to risks, commitments and surprises without becoming paralyzed or desperate. 2 years of finding more stability underneath my feet by following my intuition when it truly needed my attention. 2 years of a lot of fighting and rebellion but also less of both. I am curious about the next steps in this life and in this marriage.
Cheers!

Anniversary March 16

Spiderlips

Today I performed in a circle of women sharing stories of life. We all performed because we feel the healing power in that way of sharing and communing with each other and the real treasure to do it together.  I feel what we do and say on a stage like this becomes more valuable and deep, and that multiplied by an audience honestly witnessing makes it even stronger. These instant compositions can open windows to our hearts, minds and embodied values. It is created art by real life, and to witness the humanity, the depth, humor and artistry that might emerge is pure pleasure.

Bodytales ® is certainly not for everyone but it is worth a try if you want to start something new.

This text emerged shortly before our show started. It popped out during our “warm-up” and I used it for my first very short piece.
smiling_spider_by_odilon_redon_vintage_halloween_poster-rbbb4da3f5e8f4454bcf6c09a92b27fd0_v95y_8byvr_512

Spiderlips Continue reading

Body Tales ® …

… interweaves improvised movement and spoken word story for creative expression, communication and healing. Within this committed and respectful somatic practice, we tend and attend the wealth of embodied resources within our personal and collective lives, and grow our kinship and belonging as part of the Earth.

That is how Oliva Corson defines what Body Tales is.

I started a monthly group and attended a Body Tales retreat last week-end. It took place at GEORGEOUS Salamander Camp in the Santa Cruz Mountains. Hooray! Continue reading