We all have to start somewhere.
I started Life for Beginners in September of 2001. I had just moved to Munich, Germany and a blog was just the thing to keep my loved ones apprised on my adventures in Europe.
At least that was how it started. My random, ebullient posts about my new life in Bavaria – land of Oktoberfest, lederhosen and humongous portions of roasted pork knuckle – reassured family and friends that I was alive and well, if having a tad too much fun when I ought to be studying.
But nothing remains the same forever.
Over the years, the blog morphed and manifested in ways that surprised even me (and, mysteriously magically marvellously, continues to do so): It chronicled the wilderness years when I didn’t know what I wanted to do with my life (I probably still don’t but that’s not a bad thing, really); the years on the road and flying around, and being busy being busy; the years of love and the even better, deeper love that builds over time; the wonders and the tragedies; and most blessed of all, the years that continue to arrive and delight.
I may not know where this will take me but I am very grateful to have started.
We all have to start somewhere. Why not now? (And some day, far in the future, this now will be history and nostalgia and remembrances.)
BEHIND THE NAME
There is no end to learning, they say. I have always felt that this was a good problem to have; for if we cease in seeking knowledge and discovering new things, we would be sloths on the couch, consuming but not creating, being entertained without entertaining a single thought of our own.
It’s always more fun to be challenged than merely be distracted.
So this life is designed for students, for the curious and the intrepid. For beginners, I thought. What an apt name for my blog, since everything was new to me as I learned to pour Weißbier into vase-shaped glasses and fold pizza dough into a calzone in Trento.
Not knowing is a wondrous thing for then we may explore and experience. How exhilarating!
Years later, I would come across this line from Bohemian-Austrian poet Rainer Maria Rilke:
Im Leben gibt es keine Klassen für Anfänger, sondern es ist immer das Schwerste, das von einem verlangt wird.
Translated from German, that beautiful line of wisdom reverberates:
“There are no classes in life for beginners; right away you are always asked to deal with what is most difficult.”
There is something reaffirming about the universe acknowledging that how you felt – how you feel – is not only unreasonable but also okay. The universe, the past and another soul. Oh so many other souls.
We are not snowflakes. We are not the first to feel this way, to experience the troubles of the world. And that is excellent news.
For this also means that we are not alone. We are companions in this journey, whether we know it or not. Even when divided, we have more in common than we realise or admit.
Life teaches that there is a path we may walk together, as friends and not enemies.
AND SO…
These days I share stories of the foods we’ve tasted and the places we’ve been, the rituals and customs that are new and delightful to us, the wonderful people we meet, and the experiences we’ve had along the way.
I believe in the power words to change our lives. And to change our lives for the better.
Thank you for reading. Have an awesome day.