Monday, December 09, 2013

Three Years Ago


It was nearly 3 years ago that I moved to a caravan in rural eastern Germany near the Polish border to become a full time musician and to find myself again after being lost for so long. I moved in on Christmas Day with my Canadian cat Reece and 'Caravan Magdalena' was supposed to be our home for 6 months but our time there stretched into nearly 1 1/2 years until finally we made our home in Berlin. During my time in Mecklenburg Vorpommern I wrote songs and practiced my instruments in a tiny space, read a lot, learned about and collected wild herbs and grew 35 plants from seed. I learned to relax properly for the first time in my life, learned how to live without a toilet and how to insulate an old caravan that was literally falling to pieces. I got to know and like myself and came to terms with the bits that I didn't like as much. I finally got my depression to a manageable place without the use of pharmaceutical drugs, or doctors through a change of diet, lifestyle, and mindset. I also became vegan and often shared my bed with my cat and 2 cats from the neighbouring house to keep warm during winter. What an amazing and challenging period of my life that was and even though it wasn't always easy I am grateful for the lessons I learned and the quiet moments I had with myself and nature.