Discover life: In my element

Have I been alive today / in the last few days?

Yes!

What new things have I discovered about life?

A change of pace does you a world of good. Ever since I discovered years ago, whilst reading the story of Creation, just how beneficial rhythms are, I’ve incorporated them into my daily and weekly routines as best I could. And into longer periods of my life, too. After the intense period on the boat from August to the end of October, I now felt that I needed to take a little break internally. To slow the pace down a bit for three weeks. To cut back on work and planning. To take a deep breath. And I can feel how good it is for me. Of course, I’m still looking for the right solution for

– Heating

– Inlet and effluent

– Ventilation

– Solar

But knowing that I don’t need to rush; that I’ll find the solutions step by step. It’s not so much the outward appearance that makes the difference, but above all what’s inside… taking a step back, taking a deep breath… in two weeks’ time, when the 2013 lecture season is over, I’ll be back in full swing.

What new things have I discovered about myself?

I love being in my element. At the weekend, I organised a conference at the Dünenhof. I spoke about swing. And I really enjoyed the setting and the 80 women who were there as participants. I was able to be myself and give my all.

What pleased me most was the feedback from the women who told me what had moved them.

„Your statement, “Behind every argument lies a need„, really hit home.“ „I usually go red with excitement. But you were so relaxed that it rubbed off on me. For me, that’s the greatest miracle of this weekend!“ (A staff member). I’d spoken openly and honestly about the difficulties I’d struggled with and still do. At the end of the weekend, a woman said to me: „Kerstin, when I look at you, I see a woman who, even in the midst of painful situations, still radiates a zest for life. Would you pray for me, so that I can develop that too?“ And another said: “You’re really good at explaining things. When I told my husband about the seminar yesterday, I realised just how much I’d managed to take in.” I’m simply grateful that I was able to give something – and that it clearly resonated with people.

Towards the end of the conference, I invited all the women to decide what specific positive changes they wanted to make. They could write this down on pieces of paper. As a tangible symbol of their decision, I invited them to hammer a nail into a beam. Just as the women began hammering, the woman in charge of the music struck up a song. She had chosen the song „Lord, I seek your peace, far from the clamour of this world…“. It was only when a third of the participants – surrounded by the noise of the hammering – burst out laughing that she realised the humour of the situation…

For everyone who is keeping Bernd – who had a stroke – in their thoughts: his speech was fine when I visited him, but the right side of his body is already quite badly affected and he’s in a lot of pain because he can no longer take the migraine medication that usually helps him. He’s starting rehab this week – I’m grateful to everyone who is praying for him alongside me.