To find one’s voice. There is this process of learning, trying, copying, daring, failing, repeating, and doing. And you are doing it again and again. And again. Years pass. Until that voice knocks at your door, and the time has come to let it in…

Today I noticed my butterflies are in motion. They are many, many-colored dancing inside of me.

My heart is opening. Cells stand up. The inner smile grows. The eyes shine without seeing anything specific. Energy rises and flows with that girlish tickling…

To tend to your garden in autumn and winter, knowing that spring will surely come and that summer will gift you with its fruits.

The cycle of coming and going is life. What makes us all fight it? Why aren’t we seeing the big picture? Waves and clouds appear as fast as they dissolve. Ocean and sky are with us always.

So is our mind. …

How on earth are you able to be so kind and loving? How can you cook and do the washing every day? Ignore the unfriendly comments and leave your kids with an encouraging smile into their day to embrace them coming back with strawberries. Thinking, arranging, offering, inspiring, being there when they are sick, looking the other way when they come home with their first love, and encouraging them when they are sad. All of that you do without thinking of yourself. Again and again. — And again.

Making a sand mandala takes weeks to months of meticulous attention to be blown to pieces shortly after its creation. Ikebana lasts only as long as the flowers are vigorous.

However short, both processes are deeply satisfying. How come?

Let’s notice the wonders, the awes, the eternal seconds — when we witness the good in others, the beauty around us, the kind gestures, the harmony in sounds, the goosebump moments, the tender touches, the elegance in movements, the wonder of form, the fountains of color, the finesse in detail.

Karma seems to be a complex system. We often don’t understand why something happens to us and trying might be worthless. The good news, instead of looking backward, look forward. Our acts, words, and thoughts indeed result in our future. If I am nice to my neighbor today, he won’t mind opening the door at night. If my partner is sick and I stay at his side, our love will grow. If no one dumps plastic into the ocean, fish won’t die due to it, and our oceans will be a resource. If we exercise, our bodies will be fit. When I forgive generously, I will relax the system. Is your mind already trying to find exceptions to my examples?

Sunday evening. The kids not at home. “Let’s do something special.” A night à deux, only us. Romantic dinner, cinema, being at the shore? It sounded all good — anything.

“Just a little bit more work. Could you help me?” “Sure.”

The cinema had started when we raised our heads again. …

When I lived in Paris, I met one of my good friends in life: Silence, being alone with myself.

At 12, I didn’t like being alone in a room without music or TV on. At 16, I thought I couldn’t be only with myself. Slowly anxiety crept in. And then, at 23, I moved to Paris.

To make your thoughts into objects you look at, notice, and can let go of with ease is meditation.

To do this, again and again, is practice. It is like building up a muscle called — peace, loving-kindness, focus, joy, or wisdom.

To be able to enjoy meditation is bliss.

Aren’t we all craving to be surrounded by love and open-minded, kind people? How about beginning to be kind to ourselves and others?

Find the feeling with its sensation in you. Open your heart for yourself. Be kind, forgiving, and mellow. Let niceness flow inside of you.

Today my little niece woke up not finding her auntie in bed. She bravely descended the staircase, asking if I would join her back in bed….

Days come and go. We talk to strangers, ourselves, or friends. We walk down the street: shop, cook, eat, and clean. Are in conversation: ask questions, answer, talk, react, feel, react, text, think, and finally, sleep. We fill our days with learning, improving, and reaching goals. And when, when do we stop?

What opens our hearts? It might be a gesture, a familiar view, a touching movie, a compliment….we sense more energy around the heart, our eyes get a tiny bit more pressure, and tears might rise or even roll…there might be stillness and a slight smile on the inside of one’s lips. Daring to feel. Sometimes there is no choice.

Eggs hunting, the wooden bunny school, colorful stitched tablecloth from my granny, hand-colored eggs, blossoming branches. It is a different feeling than Christmas. Somehow fresher, somehow lighter. Family, good food, playing cards together. Being outside in the fresh air. Spring flowers and these amazing colors everywhere…

Feelings are like a bouquet of flowers standing in a corner. We often don’t see them during our typical day running around. We tend to ignore or overshadow them, get busy, change the topic, or run away from situations that would make us cry or break our hearts.

How would it be to shut down our thoughts and finally relax? If there would be a switch: on — off, on — off. Off.

Silence, nothingness, blackout. Is this what enlightenment means? Surely not. As long as one lives, one will bleed when stitched. Is happy when loved. Has pain when being hurt….

Today began my new course. Happiness is a skill, Spring 2023. After clarifying our intentions, we jumped into the magic of listening: When You and I become WE. This is not a given. It is a dance that needs a specific choreography…

Forgiving. You sweet giver of lightness. You who make life joyful and free again. Who relaxes my shoulders, lets me bounce around, and my smile appear.

You remind me of what love is. Beautiful and free.

Emotional and disturbed, we often miss the overview and can’t see what brought us into the situation. Further, we don’t know how best to react. In this case, it is helpful to take a short time-out. Take a deep breath and look at the situation from above, like a helicopter finding a way out of a traffic jam. With distance, you can see what created the tumult, where the blog is, and how to get out of it.