It's sunny for one of the first days in a-g-e-s.

When I say ages, I mean for a few days. And sunny here tends to mean totally clear skies, completely fresh and bright. Wonderful.

There was an amazing rainbow yesterday that spanned the Straße des 17. Juni as the sun went down.

And two days ago the sunset was something else.


Lizzie came to stay last week which was huge fun. We went up the Reichstag and got given a free information pack that is actually very interesting - contained a poster with lots of information about how parliament works, if you're into that kind of thing. We did other touristy things, ate lots of cake and stayed up chatting til almost sunrise. JOY. It was also great to introduce her to the team, both sides having heard so much about each other.

Yesterday morning I was chat chat chatting to Herr Michael in the staffroom and something fell out of my bag. It was a flyer to an event my student group was putting on entitled "Sex, Geld, Macht: Nach Sinn der Sehnsucht" (Sex, Money, Power: a search for the reasons for yearning) ...
and obvs like bread landing butter side down the word SEX was the most visible part.

9th November, amongst other things, was Rememberance Sunday - obviously - but it was also the day in 1989 the Berlin Wall came down. Must have been an odd, bittersweet feeling for the Germans celebrating. Whenever a German mentions Hitler in a public context it always makes me feel really uncomfortable.

For various reasons I have been feeling sad; and I know that will continue for a while.

Knowing that I won't be myself for a good while has made me think (again) about things - especially whether it matters. It doesn't. Although it makes me feel bad having to inflict myself on the people around me in this kind of a mindframe. And it isn't a great prospect to have to come to terms with. So it does.

BUT

"Neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth,
nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God
that is in Christ Jesus our Lord."

[Romans 8v38-39]

So, really, it doesn't.