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| Taken outside of the Hau Hebel am Ufer theater on Stresemannstraße. The show's title struck a chord with me. |
"You're still haunting me. It sounds unfounded. Although it's apathy, what goes around you see, breaks the boundaries. Walk with a smile, and it's all just a style since you put me on trial today." - 'The Other Side' by Drab Majesty
Touching down at the BER Flughafen in mid-April, I had no idea what to expect in Berlin this time around. Living here from 2018 through 2020 was an emotional, action packed experience with not much time to pause and reflect.
Though in hindsight, as I get older, I see it as one of the most important periods in my life.
For various reasons when I left Berlin at the end of September 2020, I felt that I had let myself down. Fallen below the high standards I set for myself. I spent the following 4 months in Saskatchewan, which at the time felt a bit like Purgatory.
Three plus years, some Therapy, and many emotional Band-Aids later, I had no idea if Berlin would have anything left in store for me.
I made a pleasant discovery within 2 days of arriving - Der Stadt Spricht. The city itself will speak to you if you're willing to bitte Ruhe sein.
Places that spoke to me the most this time included Hansa Tonstudios at Kothener Straße 38 (a Recording Studio that was used in the past by David Bowie, Depeche Mode, and U2), and an Ehemaligen Frauengefangnis that is currently used as an Artist's Atelier.
Through walking and biking around the city, all the while putting my ear to the ground, I got a strong impression that Berlin had missed me a little. I certainly missed the city while I was away. Part of what I had yet to figure out in 2018 - 2020 is that es geht um Beziehungen. Hence the importance of the entry I wrote shortly before leaving Berlin on how life is the giving and receiving of Respect.
Meeting with old friends again felt like putting the pieces of a Puzzle together. It helped me create meaning from the 2 years I spent living in Europe, and is currently giving me optimism for the Zukunft.
Particularly nice was re-connecting with echt Berliner und Berlinerrin, such as Chantal from the weltweit bekannten 'Chantal's House of Shame.' These people taught me about what really matters in life, and how to get the most out of it.
Surprise! Es geht nicht um Geld.
Wir mussen unseren Beziehungen in dieses leben shutzen und verteidigen. Manchmal haben leute mit der Macht die Beziehungen benutzen für Selbstbereicherung. That kind of behaviour has lasting consequences. Namely vergiftet Beziehungen.
My personal feeling is that the more we must contend with the Erde's rapidly changing weather and the hard choices that are surely coming, Selbstbereicherung will become less and less important. We have already taken more than our fair share of resources from the Erde.
Instead, the quality of our relationships will become ever more important. I think of the ending of the 1999 film American Beauty. At the end of his life, Kevin Spacey's character recalls his relationships with his wife and daughter as having been the most important things in his life.
While nice to have, a Pied a Terre in another country, the sports car, the fancy clothes... you can't take it with you.
Es geht also um die Beziehungen, die wir zueinander haben.
I want to end this entry by thanking all the Berliners who extended their hospitality to me this time around. Also - the food is still delicious. Highlights include Mustafa's Gemuse Doner und Kebap, and Scheer's Schniztel unter die Oberbaumbrücke.
Berlin - ich liebe dich. Bis Nächstes Mal.
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| The Author at BER Flughafen on 27.04.2024. |
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