Ladenkirche Senfkorn celebrated its first birthday last week. The name Senfkorn (mustard seed) comes from the Bible, the Gospel according to Mark, Chapter 4:

And he said, Whereunto shall we liken the kingdom of God? or with what comparison shall we compare it? It is like a grain of mustard seed, which, when it is sown in the earth, is less than all the seeds that be in the earth: But when it is sown, it groweth up, and becometh greater than all herbs, and shooteth out great branches; so that the fowls of the air may lodge under the shadow of it.

 

"He" is Jesus, and this is the first time I've ever quoted the Bible in anything I've written. I'm not a believer and I don't know anything about the kingdom of God, but I know that the work Kerstin has been doing in Senfkorn for the past twelve months is a wonderful thing. She's managed to bring people together and form a community: from just a few parents at the beginning, the Eltern-Kind-Café has grown into the family event in City Park and Senfkorn is almost too crowded now. New babies are born, our children are growing up together. It's a place bursting with giggles and positive energy and I'm thankful that it exists.

About the photo: We were given mustard seeds to plant, to mark the occasion. The funniest thing happened in our pot - one seedling kept sprouting after another, in regular intervals and in a straight row. This is what the pot looked liked a couple of days ago; now it houses a regular mustard jungle.

...it's cold. And there's a freezing gale splashing the rain on window-panes. Playgrounds are deserted. The evening air smells like snow.

It's not that I mind. Autumn is my favourite season. But I do mind the sudden change. I know it's probably just a cold front and more likely than not, the birds will be chirping once again in a few days, but not for much longer. Still, a change so dramatic can be disturbing.

On the other hand, a change for the colder and the darker can never come softly enough. I dreamed about my grandfather the other night. He was sitting in front of his old country house (he had sold it years ago) and drinking coffee. He'd never say no to a cup of coffee. The dream reminded me of that, gently. (Are there other things about him I'm on the verge of forgetting?) His death didn't come suddenly - I'm sure it was taking too long for his liking - but one can never be prepared for loss. We miss him.

Una first noticed Pepi when she was about five months old. Until then, she had probably thought of him in terms of "sofa" or "table". He had always wanted to get close to her and when she finally noticed him, they began to interact. This interaction was more or less limited to his failed and successful attempts to lick her face and her attempts to pull at his ears. But her movements were still very uncoordinated, so she couldn't really get to him.

This division of power did not last very long. As soon as Una started to walk, the pursuer became the pursued. She took up pulling his ears, his tail, poking his eyes and trying to pull out his tongue. Pepi would run as soon as she came near, and this went on for quite a while. Una's domination is the potential reason why Pepi got ill last spring - the vet claims his problems were psychosomatic. Whenever Marlene starts harrassing Pepi, Sonja says: "Marlene, lass den Pepi in Ruhe, der war schon Stresskrank", which I find hilarious because it's true.

A few days ago, probably by unnoticeable divine intervention, I remembered to give Pepi some of his old toys back - his green ball and a chewable, squeaky plastic weight thingy. About the same time, we bought Una a tent. The combination of snatching the toys from one another and hiding in the tent turned out to be the winning one - now they play at least half an hour a day with giggles galore. I don't have a picture, but I might take a video one of these days as Una's laughter is the key to understanding just how much she enjoys it. Happy days!

My friend Sonja (Marlene's mother) is getting married (to Helmut, Marlene's father, of all people!) in November. I will be taking photos of the wedding instead of buying them a gift. The schedule is pretty hectic - I will be working in my jeans and Chucks for the ceremony and the reception afterwards as well as the outdoor portraits of the two. In the afternoon I'll change into a more festive attire, join the dinner party and let somebody else take the snaps.

A few days ago, Sonja had the first dress fitting and this is where my work began. I don't want to show the dress yet, here is only a detail - a flower painted on cream satin (design by Joop).

During the fitting, the kids were running around and playing, a very relaxed atmosphere. Marlene will be wearing a lovely burgundy-and-white dress with puff tulle skirt and patent leather Mary Janes. I also bought Una her dress for the occassion, but I'm going to let that one be a surprise. I'll also be baking one of the cakes. I'm excited and looking forward to it all more than you can imagine, probably because I didn't have a proper wedding myself. Now I'm actually going through it all as if it were my wedding, but without the stress of organizing the whole thing, having to look my very best, worrying if everything will turn out all right etc. It's actually great fun.

The vernissage was lovely. I'm really proud of my friends, they made me feel like I belonged here.

Una ate all the salzstangen and grissini.

All photos taken by me, except for the last photo in the row - taken by Julie Therré.