After mentioning this wonderful Danish concept a lot, I found quite a nice description of it...
"-Oh aren't we having a hyggelig time!
When you are in Denmark there's no escaping the phenomenon "hygge" (the adjective form is "hyggelig"). Impossible to translate into English, the word designates a state of being and a feeling of complete satisfaction and relaxation, often in the good company of friends or relatives. Lit candles are an integral part of "hygge", The Danes just love their candles, and when the winter approaches they almost long for this cold and dark season when it's time to light the candles and have a "hyggelig" time.
Danes may "hygge" on their own, but usually it's something you do in company of one or more persons. "Hygge" very often involves eating or drinking of some sort, but it is possible to find Danes who are having a "hyggelig" time just sitting on a bench, without anything else but each other's good company. You don't neccessarily have to be with friends or aquaintances to have a "hyggelig" time,- you may hit it off with complete strangers, who will then immediately become part of the "hygge", perhaps ven without being aware of it. All they know is that when they leave, they'll be filled with a well-being in both body and soul. The "hygge"-concept is hard to explain, but one thing is for certain- it's the Danes' favourite leisure-time activity." from WHERE2GO 2007 International edition
Tuesday, January 30, 2007
Monday, January 29, 2007
flere historier
lately it finally snowed a lot
so much that the sky was bright at 3 in the night
and we went out to have some snowballfight
Nevertheless i bought the first yellow springflowers
and they look kinda nice
i went home from a party one early morning walking with my bike close by as the snow was to high to cycle
an elderly man took a walk with his dog at 6 in the morning he smiled at me and made some funny comment about the weather
thought that was beautiful,
i should try more to smile to people on the streets
a friend teached some good stuff the other day
about deserts which God uses to teach us to be close to him
and that these phases will come again and again.
One picture that really struck me was when he talked about the promised land as a land of milk and honey. Hope i get it together somehow. In Israel about 20% of the country can be used to grow all kinds of stuff and this is also where the honey comes from. The other 80% are dry land, where the sheeps are and the milk. The sheeps survive becuase their shepherds know the right time and places,- those places where early in the morning some small pieces of grass grow, when the sun is rising this grass quickly gets dry. So the sheep are dependent on their shepherd to lead them at the right time to these places to get some food in the desert. These places with the tiny bits of grass coming through the stones are called green pastures in Hebrew. Nothing with vast green land where the sheeps lay and grow fat, and the scripture of psalm 23 on the postcard. Just enough to go on. Talked about how easy we want to go away from the desert cos it seems like its not from god. Cos we think we gotta have it all together and then things have to run well, like if we believe right then God will give us the smooth successful life. And we miss out on his precious teachings. Was so good to hear that,- and it raised awareness in me. Thank you shepherd.
so much that the sky was bright at 3 in the night
and we went out to have some snowballfight
Nevertheless i bought the first yellow springflowers
and they look kinda nice
i went home from a party one early morning walking with my bike close by as the snow was to high to cycle
an elderly man took a walk with his dog at 6 in the morning he smiled at me and made some funny comment about the weather
thought that was beautiful,
i should try more to smile to people on the streets
a friend teached some good stuff the other day
about deserts which God uses to teach us to be close to him
and that these phases will come again and again.
One picture that really struck me was when he talked about the promised land as a land of milk and honey. Hope i get it together somehow. In Israel about 20% of the country can be used to grow all kinds of stuff and this is also where the honey comes from. The other 80% are dry land, where the sheeps are and the milk. The sheeps survive becuase their shepherds know the right time and places,- those places where early in the morning some small pieces of grass grow, when the sun is rising this grass quickly gets dry. So the sheep are dependent on their shepherd to lead them at the right time to these places to get some food in the desert. These places with the tiny bits of grass coming through the stones are called green pastures in Hebrew. Nothing with vast green land where the sheeps lay and grow fat, and the scripture of psalm 23 on the postcard. Just enough to go on. Talked about how easy we want to go away from the desert cos it seems like its not from god. Cos we think we gotta have it all together and then things have to run well, like if we believe right then God will give us the smooth successful life. And we miss out on his precious teachings. Was so good to hear that,- and it raised awareness in me. Thank you shepherd.
Friday, January 19, 2007
stories
i dreamed last night that the european union made the decision to introduce
Dutch as the "school-language" in all european countries, so that it would be cheaper to mainstream all education and to have exchanges...
the theoretical semester is over now, got today my credits for it,
after the last weeks have been so much work with our project about
"social work with members of ethnic minorities in the Danish Folkeskole".
Just learned so much.
The one evening i went home at midnight from the college, carrying the laptop and my broken bike through the city. Just wanted to get home and surely i didn't expected anyone to stop for helping me, maybe because i also would't do it.
At this one crossing there came suddely these 2 man, carrying big bags.
They just stopped and asked: Help you? slawian accent, i think.
I just was really amazed, that they being busy with other stuff, maybe being strangers in this
country just offered me their help. It so reminded me of how easily i get so caught up in my daily busyness that i don't realise anymore whats going on around me, don't recognise my neighbor. How much o life do we miss by this? Please God help us taking the time for each other.
Spend the other day some time again in this part of the city i like so much. It's just so alife, being often in the newspapers called "ghetto", due to its many colourful inhabitants and associated problems.
Nearly everytime i have a look in the shops, buying my fruits and vegetables, i have one or two random talks about where i come from or that black is a nice haircolour. It just makes me so glad being there, the interest, the openeness, the streetlife, the noise. A sign in one shop saying: "Foreigners, please don't leave us alone with the Danes". I like being here together.
We spend the evenings in the flat with candles, wine or tea and telling stories.
From India, Israel and Germany, Kibbuz, childhood in british-indian schools and daily stuff. Yesterday my flatmate from Israel pointed at a photo of a man in the newspaper, and told that she made once coffee for him. It was the leader of the israelian army.
These times are such a priviledge and quite challenging for me. Flatmates who require openness, changing people going in and out our flat, unpredictability, strange days, and the try to make this to some kind of home with a certain feeling of safety.
Feels like my range of actions and behaviour, they ways how i used to deal with people and things don't "work" anymore as i was used to and things just seem to slip my hands. And in all that there is still this wish for community. What if everything works totally different than i expected and what if i expected God to work and be here without seeing "all the conditions"?
Dutch as the "school-language" in all european countries, so that it would be cheaper to mainstream all education and to have exchanges...
the theoretical semester is over now, got today my credits for it,
after the last weeks have been so much work with our project about
"social work with members of ethnic minorities in the Danish Folkeskole".
Just learned so much.
The one evening i went home at midnight from the college, carrying the laptop and my broken bike through the city. Just wanted to get home and surely i didn't expected anyone to stop for helping me, maybe because i also would't do it.
At this one crossing there came suddely these 2 man, carrying big bags.
They just stopped and asked: Help you? slawian accent, i think.
I just was really amazed, that they being busy with other stuff, maybe being strangers in this
country just offered me their help. It so reminded me of how easily i get so caught up in my daily busyness that i don't realise anymore whats going on around me, don't recognise my neighbor. How much o life do we miss by this? Please God help us taking the time for each other.
Spend the other day some time again in this part of the city i like so much. It's just so alife, being often in the newspapers called "ghetto", due to its many colourful inhabitants and associated problems.
Nearly everytime i have a look in the shops, buying my fruits and vegetables, i have one or two random talks about where i come from or that black is a nice haircolour. It just makes me so glad being there, the interest, the openeness, the streetlife, the noise. A sign in one shop saying: "Foreigners, please don't leave us alone with the Danes". I like being here together.
We spend the evenings in the flat with candles, wine or tea and telling stories.
From India, Israel and Germany, Kibbuz, childhood in british-indian schools and daily stuff. Yesterday my flatmate from Israel pointed at a photo of a man in the newspaper, and told that she made once coffee for him. It was the leader of the israelian army.
These times are such a priviledge and quite challenging for me. Flatmates who require openness, changing people going in and out our flat, unpredictability, strange days, and the try to make this to some kind of home with a certain feeling of safety.
Feels like my range of actions and behaviour, they ways how i used to deal with people and things don't "work" anymore as i was used to and things just seem to slip my hands. And in all that there is still this wish for community. What if everything works totally different than i expected and what if i expected God to work and be here without seeing "all the conditions"?
Friday, January 12, 2007
besides
"at fremelske" = to further or encourage
literally translated it means "to love forth"
isn't that beautiful?
literally translated it means "to love forth"
isn't that beautiful?
Tuesday, January 09, 2007
it's pushing the hardest eskimo right off the schlitten (said this self-made-sticker on this german cash-machine)
hope you are all doing well, friends
just really back in DK again
after
trying to hitchhike for 4-5 hours without anybody stopping
arriving after endless seeming hours in town of origin
for lot´s of coffees with friends, talks and stories,- the nice and sad ones
best Kebab ever with free appletea and turkish popmusic (that's how it has to be)
dancing whole night with friends i never did before
mommies cheesesoup at christmas eve
being very huggative with my brothers-
squeezing each other and the one who screams first loses
an american friend which i haven´t seen for 3 years and who is very dear to me, appearing suddenly out of my parents neighbors house
too much to comprehend
realising again, while being with my friends, how much i love them
meeting my dad in the kitchen, as always around 3 in the night with our ususal question "and what do we eat now?"
lack of sleep
travelling to holland with slow trains and cheap ticket, funny to watch how people get connected in their common enemy called german railway
being at a sunday service in holland, amazed by the way how openly people seem to share their things going on in their life with their whole community
feeling safe, feeling insecure
loving the fact that you can go in the small dutch town from house to house to hang out with some random people of church for a tea
trying to figure out friendships- we have a need for safety in our relationships
the hugs, old factories
and a random talk with a girl from iran on the way to DK
went then straight with my projectgroup on a tiny danish fairytale island
staying in an grandmothers house- the whole village lookes like a museum filled with
colourful tiny house sticking to each other with little lamps outside that light the brickstreets at night
got invited sometimes for amazing danish hospitality
it's somehow beautiful to just hang out with "normal danish people" in their houses
we also experienced an island-tradition to the "holy three kings"
the people there just put lights as signs in front of their houses and people totally covered with masks and disguised talking in high voices sad down at the table and the hosts try to find out where they are as they all seem to know each other.
really surreal and funny experience- we were immediately recognised as " what are these strangers doing here?"
I like being back
I'm glad to be here
there is so much goodness to experience
also in all that seeming to be too much for me/us
just really back in DK again
after
trying to hitchhike for 4-5 hours without anybody stopping
arriving after endless seeming hours in town of origin
for lot´s of coffees with friends, talks and stories,- the nice and sad ones
best Kebab ever with free appletea and turkish popmusic (that's how it has to be)
dancing whole night with friends i never did before
mommies cheesesoup at christmas eve
being very huggative with my brothers-
squeezing each other and the one who screams first loses
an american friend which i haven´t seen for 3 years and who is very dear to me, appearing suddenly out of my parents neighbors house
too much to comprehend
realising again, while being with my friends, how much i love them
meeting my dad in the kitchen, as always around 3 in the night with our ususal question "and what do we eat now?"
lack of sleep
travelling to holland with slow trains and cheap ticket, funny to watch how people get connected in their common enemy called german railway
being at a sunday service in holland, amazed by the way how openly people seem to share their things going on in their life with their whole community
feeling safe, feeling insecure
loving the fact that you can go in the small dutch town from house to house to hang out with some random people of church for a tea
trying to figure out friendships- we have a need for safety in our relationships
the hugs, old factories
and a random talk with a girl from iran on the way to DK
went then straight with my projectgroup on a tiny danish fairytale island
staying in an grandmothers house- the whole village lookes like a museum filled with
colourful tiny house sticking to each other with little lamps outside that light the brickstreets at night
got invited sometimes for amazing danish hospitality
it's somehow beautiful to just hang out with "normal danish people" in their houses
we also experienced an island-tradition to the "holy three kings"
the people there just put lights as signs in front of their houses and people totally covered with masks and disguised talking in high voices sad down at the table and the hosts try to find out where they are as they all seem to know each other.
really surreal and funny experience- we were immediately recognised as " what are these strangers doing here?"
I like being back
I'm glad to be here
there is so much goodness to experience
also in all that seeming to be too much for me/us
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)