Embracing the ordinary (and staying alive to the extraordinary)

“ You give but little when you give of your possessions. It is when you give of yourself that you truly give. ” —Kahlil Gibran I have always loved these Russian nesting dolls. The bright colours, the intricate patterns and the unpacking of that which is hidden. All very appealing to me. And recently I've heard and seen a few things that reminded me again of these dolls and what they represent to me ... Night time in the Müller household has taken on a familiar, comfortable pattern that seems to work well to preserve our sanity. After our joint evening meal, our children are sent to bed invited to experience the wonders of rest. (Always too early if they are to be believed!) Once the final round of tidying of the day is completed, the last emails responded to and some brief interactions with social media, Markus and I talk about the day. The highs and lows and the bits in between. The things that inspired us or challenged us and how we were moved to anger, sadness, burst...

In February, we had this incredible opportunity to go on a family road trip in South Africa (a.k.a. the Motherland). And in our eagerness for this holiday adventure, we made our many preparations: Friends invited, check ... Flights and insurance sorted, check ... Birth certificates copied and translated, check ... Pets and plants taken care of, check ... Accommodation and itinerary sorted, check ... Bags packed, check. Finally, because we live in the Magic Kingdom and Enchanted Forest (more about that another day) ... House sitter, check. This final point took care of a few things on our list: pets, peace of mind, plants etc. Since moving to our own little paradise, in a quiet village, we have heard frequently that it would be foolish to leave our home unoccupied for the duration of our trip. So we dutifully (and a bit skeptically) found someone willing to occupy our space and take on the duties listed above. We thought we were doing them a favour ...! Fast forward to 5 days into o...

Writing (or creating anything, really) isn't about achievement. It's about connection. It's a hand reaching out, a bridge, an invitation .  Shauna Niequist We recently took a trip as a family. It was an opportunity to hang out with some people we wanted to get to know better and also have some much needed fun, family time. During one of our breaks, we went for a walk to explore the area and look at a bridge that claimed to be the longest bridge built by a single person. I have had a deep fascination regarding bridges since childhood and I guess if you would have asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up, it would be someone who built bridges. I know now that the technical term is civil engineer, but really I am still only interested in those bridges. So we set off to see a bridge. Along the way we rescued a tiny snake from certain death on a road*, saw a road kill rabbit, encountered some other critters my children were interested in and picked up loads...