Why always later?
It does not have to be a beach villa in the Caribbean: But to have your little dream paradise in your head is comforting in stressful times, often even vitally important. Because dreams are the engine that drives us. They show us that there are goals or desires worth living for, be they spectacular or modest: if the house in the south is simply too expensive, the money may be enough for the dacha on the outskirts. It only gets really bad when we stop dreaming. Because then we live without hope.
Dreams reflect our soul, so we should never dismiss them as spinning. Sometimes it just takes a little longer to come true. It is important that we do not lose sight of them, that we keep them like a precious treasure, cherish and nurture - especially in times when they seem out of reach.
It is never too late to live your own dream
"Working on a dream", Bruce Springsteen sings on his new record. It's about love. As you know, it has a lot to do with the ability to make dreams come true, to live them. But that always means a piece of work. It means saying goodbye to conventions and habits, from life lived so far. Above all, one thing is important: a long breath. Often only a few small steps lead to the goal. The coincidence. Or both. It's never too late to reach for the stars.
Eva-Maria Countess Wachtmeister, 56, followed her wanderlust - as a hostess on a cruise ship Her great love is a ship. A luxury cruise ship that circles the globe at least once a year. Eva-Maria Countess Wachtmeister found her dream job at "Europa". She is a hostess, "Grande Dame of communication" and, next to the first officer, the right hand of the captain. For years Eva-Maria had flirted with the "Europe". But as so often with loved ones the time was not yet ripe. Her daughters Alexandra, Victoria and Sophia (today 29, 27, 21) were too small, the husband, a hotelier, rarely at home. "I was only a housewife and mother for 20 years - a great time," says the trained hotel clerk in retrospect. But Eva-Maria, who spent her own childhood in southwest Africa, today's Namibia, felt wanderlust. And although she took many trips with her husband and children during school holidays, her wanderlust grew stronger. As if parents were anticipating their yearning, they almost always invited the young mother to accompany them on a cruise.
Eva-Maria goes with her every time. Let the wind blow around your nose, watch the waves behind - and the crew on the fingers. "Could not I do that too?" She wonders. After the journeys, the peace of mind is restored, but the idea of becoming a hostess has settled in her. When she tells her husband about it, he is not exactly thrilled. He can not imagine how everyday life should work if his wife drives to sea for weeks.
Now or never.
Eva-Maria is 47 at the time. She has learned what to expect. She knows that a new crew for the "Europe" is put together. She thinks "now or never." The family has a domestic help, the youngest daughter could be cared for by the older girls. Eva Maria does not discuss her further plans with anyone else.
Meanwhile the countess, as she is called on the luxury liner, has been a hostess for almost ten years. She plans receptions, takes care of guests, listens, gives advice, arranges contacts and acquaintances - and is in her element.
"I am absolutely happy," she says. "Not only about my work, but also about my choice of my dream." Often Eva-Maria is addressed by the guests, that they shine so. "I have every reason to," she says. Even the enormous amount of daily work from 7 o'clock in the morning until 11 o'clock in the evening does not diminish their enjoyment. Alternately she is at sea for two months, two months at home. The family has got used to it and enjoys it all the more when the mother has a home leave. "I have two lives, one private, one official," says Eva-Maria. And: "I love both."
Doris Embacher, 53, bought a small house in the Netherlands and became a miller She prefers to hear how it groans in the rafters of the windmill, how the millstones creak while grinding the corn. And when Doris Embacher can dip her hands into soft white flour in the evening, she is tired but happy. Then she knows that it has been worthwhile to break away from her previous life, to throw the conventions overboard and do as she pleases."It's amazing how much power you get when you swim with your own energy instead of against it," says the mother of three children, who lives in Lemmer, Netherlands, at the age of 51, and who still has trained as a miller.
Earlier, when she still lived in Schleswig-Holstein and looked after her children Katja, Julia and Hendrik (today 33, 29, 25), when she was on the parents' council and engaged in the community - she often felt empty and burnt out. Her husband was constantly on the move, and she wondered if this was the life she had dreamed of. Actually, she had wanted to become a pastor, but married after graduation and became a housewife and mother.
At 38, she leaves her husband and moves with the children to the neighboring village. "That was a big step forward," she recalls, "and finally the chance to rethink my life and start all over again."
Now I could start all over again.
When the children are out of the house, she moves to Hamburg. Soon after, she visits friends who live in Holland. The Frisian landscape inspires her so much that she spontaneously buys a small house on a canal. First she only uses it as a holiday home, then she continues to expand her visits. The mentality of the Frisians pleases Doris Embacher: "They are so relaxed and down to earth.As a divorced woman, I was not invited to a party in my home village and no one cares whether I live alone in my house or not," she says, laughing. Sometimes they visit the ducks from the nearby pond. They walk through Doris' living room, reminding them of how good it is to follow their dreams: "I always wanted a busy life, working with my hands, to be useful." Lead an independent life. Five years ago, Doris Embacher finally moved to the Netherlands. She has the certainty of being able to start all over again, she says.
Today she speaks fluently in Dutch, she goes to the theater, to readings, meets with friends. Some time ago she leased a Tjasker - a pasture mill for irrigation of the nearby bird sanctuary. "I am fascinated by mills," she says with shining eyes. The fact that she started training with a miller was then only a matter of opportunity. She would like to run a mill herself. Doris Embacher still has enough dreams.
Her yearning for Africa inspired Miriam Hebner, 42, to open a pearl shop Glass pearl strings glide through her fingers, shimmering in all the colors of the rainbow, and clack softly as they touch. The sound reminds Miriam Hebner of Africa: of hot, dusty markets, where the shouts of the pearl traders mingle with the voices of the buyers. Like bundles of colorful snakes, the pearl strands are lying there in bundles on the tables. "When I saw that, I was completely enchanted," says the jewelry designer.
Already as a young woman, Miriam, who worked as a travel agent for 20 years, traveled to Zimbabwe, Kenya and Tanzania whenever possible. She loves the mentality of the inhabitants, the attention they pay to the little things in life. She loves the landscape, the earthy colors, the silence in the desert, the lively life in the villages: "I often sat in the shade for hours and watched life there." Back from her travels, every now and then she finds it harder to get used to the agency, phone calls, statistics, computer crashes.
She is not unhappy - but something is missing. What exactly, she finds out on a trip to the West African Togo. It's been seven years now, and what happened sounds a bit like a fairy tale. Miriam flies to Lomé, the capital of Togo. She wants to visit Binos, a Togolese whom she met shortly before in Germany. And because it is now having a lot of fun, the two of them get married a little later in the town hall of Lomé. She is only right that Binos would like to introduce her country to her on a honeymoon. At some point he leads her to a pearl market - an unforgettable moment: "When I touched the warm, dusty beads, I knew that they are the ones I need to be happy."
Africa is always with me now.
Back in Germany, Miriam begins to give her dream a basis. She attends jewelry design and accounting courses. Soon she designs her own jewelry, which she sells to her friends. Then she quits her job and rents a small shop in Hamburg-Eppendorf. "Although I knew it was my way, I was often scared of not being able to do it," she recalls. At the beginning of 2006, her shop opens: "Many of the work processes are the same as they used to, but I'm not annoyed about it anymore because I make them for myself," she says proudly. And: "Africa is always with me now."
Because when the beads are scarce, she goes to Togo and buys supplies. In the country whole merchant dynasties live on pearls; Many date back to the 17th or 18th century, when traveling merchants brought pearls from distant Europe to the small West African country to pay for spices and other goods. These old pearls are considered particularly precious today.When Miriam goes to the markets, Missio comes with her mother-in-law. Missio negotiates with the sellers, as Miriam does not speak the dialects. From her, Miriam knows about the magical powers of pearls and that all the women of Missio's family were pearl traders. , , The magic works. Miriam never wants to trade anymore.
