Berlin

Berlin you stole my heart and opened it up and you’ve returned it in a better state. 

As with everything there is a vibrational pull. To people. To situations. To places.

For me, as I know for many of you, Berlin has a pull which is nothing short of magnetic, electric, powerful.

And when it pulls you in, it holds you tight.

Some say it’s a heavy, dark, depressing city. To which I’d reply, ‘absolutely’.

It’s dirty, it’s grimy. It’s brown and grey. It can be dreary and isolating. Lonely even.

Shaved heads, leather jackets, chains and piercings. To the eye it confronts. Tats, combi boots, mohawks, khaki green, shopping trolleys filled with living rooms, junkies, homeless, oversized jackets, drunks, pupils dilated. 

But this is just one layer. One.

I was chatting with an ex pat who has lived all over the world. He said ‘even someone pissing in the street here is charming’. I believe this sums up Berlin.

With all the potential depressiveness it is a city which lights you up, energises, fills you.

It oozes charm. 

For creatives it’s a haven. 

For travellers a mecca.

It’s colour, expression and communication. From the graffiti inked everything, to the layers of posters upon posters to the bars that merge ideas and inspirations no matter how kooky. All night venues, cheap taxis, bass and electronics. The nighttime offers just as much participation as the day.

And for the day, it’s often blue skies and greenery. Sheets of orange leaves covering lamp lined streets.

There’s often an eeriness, but it’s gentle and somehow inviting.

It’s Berlin. It’s history. Culture. Tourists. Ex pats. Immigrants. Locals. Elderly on subways. Musicians blowing trumpets anywhere they choose. Guitars being strummed. Speeches made on the end of life as we know it. Students. Freelancers. Artists. Explorers.

This city has a depth. It has a soul.

I walked the streets for two weeks. So I’m really no authority to speak of what it’s like to live here. But I knew I needed to come back, and do a solid stint here. To feel like I was a part of it all, if only briefly.

And what I’ve taken away is that it’s a city which gives you permission to be who you need to be, in this moment. It gives you permission to try. It gives you permission to explore – all aspects. 

Now of course, I’m totally romanticising the whole thing. A german friend who used to live in Berlin but chose to leave brought to my awareness the less than best bits. Which of course there are. It’s a poor city. There are a lot of people doing a lot of nothing. And pupils constantly dilating grows old quickly and makes one grow old quickly too.

But in acknowledging these I still have the utmost respect for this city. Maybe because I get to leave it? I don’t know. I don’t really care either.

The first time I visited Berlin I was carrying a breaking heart, I naively had a significant amount of money stolen and I felt totally out of sorts with myself. But still I loved the city. And vowed to return. I’m so glad I did.

***

It could be that the 3 months have come to an end and things have started to make sense again. Business, home, love. An old part of self has been left behind, layers have shed, things feel lighter and more aligned.

Did Berlin give this to me? No.

But it’s Berlin I’ve ended up in because I knew it would hold me long enough, to allow what needed to finally surface to surface. For the brown and grey to rise and break, to make space for the colour to get through.

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Clare Woodward is a Kinesiologist, transformational coach, writer, speaker and considers herself a true manifesting Queen. She is insanely curious and fascinated by the workings of the mind and spirit, and understanding how these influence our experiences, in our current reality. She loves the kookiness of all things energy and gets a kick out of synchronicities, soulful encounters and hugging trees. Follow her at Woodward Institute and find her on Facebook.

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Work with me – I’m available for both in person sessions and Skype sessions. clare@woodwardinstitute.com.au / +61 408 359 922