The Imkerei

 Uwe, the Imkerei, where I work at the Weihnachtsmarkt

Imagine a busy city street lined with temporary red and white striped roofs. At night, lights sparkle and shine from within every shop and hang above, suspended in the air. A huge Santa sits before an even larger standing Toy Soldier. They keep me entertained every night while I wait for the double decker M19 Bus home. With all of the shops and decorations one can hardly notice the modern works of art, including a big water fountain or the two huge churches that are the signature for Breitscheidplatz here in Charlottenburg. One of the churches (Kaiser-Wilhelm-Gedächtniskirche) was halfway destroyed during the 2nd World War but was left standing. A second church was built next to it. It is a very modern church with small square windows that shine blue from instense blue light that illuminates the huge cross with Christ within. They are literally steps apart from each other and as contrasting as possibe. Berlin typically mixes the old with the new, the historic with the modern.

The Kaiser-Wilhelm-Gedächtniskirches side by side.

 

The Imkerei shop (where I work) at the Christmas Market is not far from these two churches. It is sandwiched between a dark shop illuminated by rich blues, oranges, reds, purples, greens and more for a visual delight of handcrafted lights in the shape of stars and flowers and a shop for Handschuhe (gloves or literally: handshoes), Mütze (winter caps) und Schals (scarves). Most of the time, Jens works there. He always has a twinkle of mischief in his eye and comes by often for honeywine and conversation. He's a painter of walls but earns money selling laterns.                                        

There are many characters that visit the Weihnachtsmarkt. Just yesterday, we had a very interesting woman accompanied by her two male friends. She wore red boots with red stockings, a short red adn white pok-a-dot skirt and an open red, shiny and puffy jacket (keep in mind it's freezing). She danced about, twirling radom stiff Germans and singing in a screechy voice burned out from shouting, cigarettes and alcohol (yes, including honey wine). Uwe, my boss, doesn't care much for the boistrous visitors but I enjoy them. Uwe is a beekeeper. He makes honey, propolis, candles from beeswax and MET (honeywine). What is honeywine? It's only honey and water that goes through a process that eventually turns into a form of wine. It has the same alcohol content as other wine (10-14%), depending on the type of honey he uses. He has many colonies of bees, each housing 60,000 bees with only one queen bee.

Weihnachtsmarkt in Charlottenburg: Inside Europa Center (L); one of the many outdoor booths- this one for sweets (R)

Dancing Between the Raindrops

Lately, I've been jogging instead of walking. It started when I decided to jog to yoga class every Tuesday. It was a great way to warm up my body before stretching. It was also on my way to yoga that it happened to be raining but I hardly got wet. I felt as though I existed in a temporal zone in constant motion and yet ever present. I never read "The Power of Now" but the title seems to capture this very revelation.

Rainy day view of the bridge connecting Kreuzberg to Friedrichshain.

I was able to catch the yellow U-Bahn (U1) that I take to my Deutschkurs.

I've been learning how to hold on to the now. It's a challenge to yield to the desire to speed ahead or dwell on the past. However, it is very rewarding to exist in the now and I find there is little room for the future or the past. Personally, I have experienced a great improvement in my voice, the ability to speak German and a job. I owe it all to the blessings I have allowed to enter my life.

It wasn't long before I came to Berlin that I signed up for German at the Volkshochschule. It wasn't an easy decision to make. Classes were every weekday, Monday through Friday from 9:30am-1:45pm. I would have to buy the monthly metrocard (Monatskarte) and quell the many questions and scenerios building in my mind. "Will I be able to afford this? What if I find a job with conflicting hours? What if I have to move and the commute is not possible?..." I was already taking weekly classes privately but I knew once a week was not enough. I knew I could be progressing faster and that learning German was a priority. I had to jump into the unknown and bypass my own mental barriers. So now the question is, where would I be had I not signed up? I know the answer. I would be further away from my dream and the path I know I should be on.

Building where I had a masterclass with Roberta Cunningham

in Charlottenburg (Berlin, Germany)

My voice? It is really coming together. I have found that a multitude of different experiences and exposure to different insights has aided me in discovering the best potential for my voice. Since in Berlin, I've worked with Janet Williams, Roberta Cunningham, Ann Rodiger and David Jones. Each experience has been monumental to my progress. December 19, 2009 I will participate in my first concert in Berlin.

My calendar: color coordinated for each activity.

Includes voice lessons, german class, health and social events/artistic outings.

The job. It was completely through God. I knew I should go to the Christmas market. I had just finished an amazing session with Ann Rodiger (Alexander Technique) and was feeling calm and connected to my body. It would've been easy to skip the market but I knew I should go, so I went. It was there that I met Uwe, the Imkerei. I was admiring the candles while he spoke to me and I tried to understand everything he said. Very clearly, I understood the question of whether or not I needed a job. "Yes" I replied. "Can you start 'jetzt'?" Ok. I didn't know the hours, how much it payed or even what exactly I'd be doing but I knew I needed a job. I had time at the moment and there was no reason to worry about why I couldn't do the job.

I've spent a substantial percent of my life in fear. Not of anything in particular, just fear that I was not doing what I 'should' be doing - that I wasn't good enough. I've come to accept that I am unique and special and have a beautiful purpose in this world. I know that this is not only true for me but of every single person born on this earth. It's just a matter of acceptance. I have found my acceptance by being in teh now and therefore drawing closer to God.

I like the image of 'dancing between the raindrops'. I see grace intertwined with beauty. It makes me think about capturing the best possibilities of the now with the uncertainty of what's to come.