Business Meeting.

An interesting thing is going on in my living room right now. The ladies who sell Thermomix in this region are having a business meeting at my dining room table. The team leader had a really cool idea last summer: as a motivational tool for sales, her ladies earned tokens that they could use to pay for.... wait for it...... LIFELINES ! So, the ladies have been working really hard selling their products and collecting tokens.
Today, I decorated the living room and dining room with Lifelines, Memories, rings, spoons, book marks and lots of candles and snacks. After the business part of the evening the ladies can look, touch and try everything on. And then pick out what they want and pay for them with their tokens.
Then I redeem the tokens with the team leader for cash.
I think it's a great idea and I had a lot of fun decorating for the ladies, even though I am pretty tired from singing a concert last night. Of course, the ladies in the living room don't even know that I sing. In fact, the only thing they know about me is that I make jewelry, speak German with an American accent and that I live in a little village on a tiny street that is awfully hard to find. I kind of like "being" that person.

Smell the roses.

I've been asked to write some encouraging and WISE statements to be included in a calendar for women to go on sale next year for Brunnen Verlag.
Do you know how hard it is to be wise on command???? I mean, normally, it is very easy for me to be wise. In fact, I'm wise every day. All the time. But if someone asks me to be wise......... uhhh, nothing!
So, I carried around a little piece of paper for a few weeks in my purse. And whenever I said something wise, I would get out my little piece of paper and write it down. (much to the annoyance of whomever I was talking to! )
Today I changed purses because my old one got soaked in a torrential rain this morning. And found in the bottom of my handbag this crumpled, barely legible piece of paper containing all the wisdom I could muster the last few weeks.
This is what was written on the paper:

"It's the imperfections that make you fascinating. People who try to be 'perfect' spend way too much time doing it, usually to the detriment of other more interesting facets of their life. "

"If you think he's not listening- he actually probably is. He just doesn't know what to say."

"It's NEVER fifty/ fifty. "

" '.....THIS TOO SHALL PASS' . This makes the sad man happy and the happy man sad. The sick man hopeful and the healthy man fearful. This makes the poor man work and the wealthy man rest. "

"Be glad your husband is different from you. You don't need a Mini-Me. So stop trying to turn him into one."

"Relationships, like seasons, are cyclical. If you don't like how things are now- just wait. They'll change. "

"If you want to stay close to your son, always act like you like his girlfriend."

Is all the brilliance of the universe encapsulated in those statements? Nope. I sure hope not. 'Cause that would be pretty sorry!
But it is definitely stuff I've learned and/or are learning. Becoming wise is an on-going process. (Was that another wise statement??!!)
What I really wanted to write though, might not apply to all women. But it certainly applies to mothers.
You know when your children are small and you say, "This is my son/daughter."?. And you kind of have the feeling that they are your possessions and you take them a little bit for granted and they get on your nerves a lot and are a complete and utter joy and adventure? And there are never enough hours in the day for everyone and everything?
Then those children grow up and one day you realize, once and for all, they are NOT your possessions in the least! Because, without asking your permission, they've grown up and are gone. They no more belong to you than the rose blooming in my garden.
And I still hear myself saying with a large dose of pride, "This is my son!"
And I still take crazy amounts of photographs because I know that Luke getting his high school diploma from the European School in Karlsruhe and then playing guitar for the graduation ceremony will only happen once.
And Alex receiving his Masters diploma in Business Administration from University of East Anglia in Norwich, England will only happen once and it is worth the flight to England to be there and photograph that moment.
I remember being advised so many times when my children were babies, "Oh, enjoy this time, because it will pass so quickly".
And I'm learning that the baby age was actually slow in passing when compared to my sons' walking across the stage to receive their well-earned diplomas.
Those moments are a heartbeat, a blink of the eye, a breathing in and breathing out- and then they're over.
What I really wanted to write on my little piece of paper was something wise that I have learned that sounds probably too Buddhist or Tao for a lot of people. But here goes:
Live Now. Consciously. Stop and smell the roses. They will be gone too soon.

"Life is all memory except for the one present moment that goes by you so quick you hardly catch it going." Tennessee Williams

Would you share your stories with me?

Hi there!
I'm working on a new album. Yup. It's about time, right?
The plan right now is to take some of my older repertoire from early albums, (like C.A.E. and Oh, Cae and Alive and Circle of Love andWelt von 1000 Wegen) and "re-dress" them. Just get rid of their old clothes and put on some clothes that fit our sound world of today. After all, some of the songs are almost 25 years old! Would you wear the clothes you wore 25 years ago???? I wouldn't. I couldn't! :)
My request to you: What are you favourite songs from those earlier albums? This is the first time EVER that I have entertained requests for an album. I'm curious to hear which songs have meant a lot to you. I would really love it if you could also write your associations and/or experiences with a song. That is what brings music alive. When a song touches a person, reaches into their heart and mind and accompanies them through a time of their lives.
Would you share your stories with me?
For your viewing pleasure I've added here two pictures from circa 1988. One is me with Dieter Falk, and one with Lothar Kosse. Smile!

Darling Domestic Animals

I have had cats and I have had dogs and this detailed description of trying to medicate your darling domestic animal is oh, so TRUE!

How to Give a Cat a Pill
1. Pick up cat and cradle it in the crook of your left arm as if holding a baby.
Position right forefinger and thumb on either side of cats mouth and gently apply pressure to cheeks while holding pill in right hand. As cat opens mouth, pop pill into mouth.
Allow cat to close mouth and swallow.

2. Retrieve pill from floor and cat from behind sofa.
Cradle cat in left arm and repeat process.

3. Retrieve cat from bedroom, and throw soggy pill away.

4. Take new pill from foil wrap, cradle cat in left arm, holding rear paws tightly with left hand.
Force jaws open and push pill to back of mouth with right forefinger. Hold mouth shut for a count of ten.

5. Retrieve pill from goldfish bowl and cat from top of wardrobe.
Call spouse in from the garden.

6. Kneel on floor with cat wedged firmly between knees, hold front and rear paws.
Ignore low growls emitted by cat. Get spouse to hold head firmly with one hand while forcing wooden ruler into mouth. Drop pill down ruler and rub cat's throat vigorously.

7. Retrieve cat from curtain rail.
Get another pill from foil wrap. Make note to buy new ruler and repair curtains. Carefully sweep shattered figurines and vases from hearth and set to one side for gluing later.

8. Wrap cat in large towel and get spouse to lie on cat with head just visible from below armpit.
Put pill in end of drinking straw, force mouth open with pencil and blow down drinking straw.

9. Check label to make sure pill not harmful to humans and drink one beer to take taste away. Apply band-aid to spouse's forearm and remove blood from carpet with cold water and soap.

10. Retrieve cat from neighbor's shed.
Get another pill. Open another beer. Place cat in cupboard, and close door onto neck, to leave head showing. Force mouth open with dessert spoon. Flick pill down throat with elastic band.

11. Fetch screwdriver from garage and put cupboard door back on hinges. Drink beer. Fetch bottle of scotch. Pour shot, drink.
Apply cold compress to cheek and check records for date of last tetanus shot. Apply whiskey compress to cheek to disinfect. Toss back another shot. Throw tee-shirt away and fetch new one from bedroom
.
12. Call fire department to retrieve the damn cat from the top of the tree across the road. Apologize to neighbor who crashed into fence while swerving to avoid cat.
Take last pill from foil wrap.

13. Using heavy-duty pruning gloves from shed, tie the little *&#%^'s front paws to rear paws with garden twine and bind tightly to leg of dining table. Push pill into mouth followed by large piece of filet steak. Be rough about it. Hold head vertically and pour two pints of water down throat to wash pill down.

14. Consume remainder of scotch. Get spouse to drive you to the emergency room. Sit quietly while doctor stitches fingers and forearm and removes pill remnants from right eye. Call furniture shop on way home to order new table.

15. Arrange for RSPCA to collect mutant cat from hell and call local pet shop to see if they have any hamsters.

How To Give A Dog A Pill
1. Wrap it in bacon.
2. Toss it in the air.

Now who could these two people be?

Mother's Day

What is the hardest AND the easiest job in the world? Being a Mother. And today, we celebrate mothers. Our own, and the ones we know. I stood in the grocery store in front of a package of vanilla wafers yesterday and cried. My Mom loved vanilla wafers. She always carried some in her purse in case she or one of us kids got hungry. The last gift she was given, the day before she died, was a box of vanilla wafers. It is interesting to me to find out that thinking of her still makes me cry. I miss her. She loved me unconditionally.
I realize that not everyone is lucky enough to have an amazing mother like I did.
My two boys have an amazing mother. Yes, I am a good mother! Just ask me!!! :) I don't "mother" like you do. I "mother" like I do. In a way that comes natural to me and I think is best for my boys. Do I get it wrong sometimes? You better believe it! But my boys know that I love them unconditionally with all my heart.
This is a year of graduation for my sons. One will graduate from Gymnasium and one will graduate from graduate school with a master's degree. Would I love them if they didn't succeed? Yes. Would I be disappointed in them because I (and only I) can see the enormous potential in these two people? Yes. Are my sons talented, smart, good-looking, multi-faceted, kind and compassionate human beings? Well, of course!
I am their ally and their catalyst, their prayer warrior and their cheer-leader.
It's a great job! I wouldn't trade with anyone.

LIFE

On Saturday I had the great honor of singing a benefit concert for the Beratungstelle Aus-Weg?! http://www.ausweg-pforzheim.de/start.html What an amazing work this handful of people do. So much time, energy, love and money poured into women and men affected by unwanted pregnancies or the emotional pain of coming to grips with past abortions. They are supported solely by private donations because the State will only financially support organizations that provide neutral options to women. This Beratungstelle is anything but neutral. They invest in LIFE. They provide contacts, counseling, money, refuge, and medical referrals in the hopes that some women considering abortion can find the strength to give their baby a fighting chance at LIFE.
I put together a program especially aimed at affirming the LIFE we've been given. Some songs that I've sung countless times took on a whole new meaning in the light of this particular theme. Songs like "Bridge over Troubled Water", "God Bless the Child" "Ich Steh zu Dir", "Seele, Was Ermüdst du Dich", "Weiter auf dem Weg", "Wir Fallen Hin" and "Seine Gnade" can be balsam for the troubled soul.
I'm so thankful for each of these songs- and so many others as well. And thankful that the Holy Spirit carries them in careful hands to so many hearts and minds.
The last song of the program was "Mutterseelenallein". I haven't sung it for years and I must admit, there was an emotional hurdle for me to jump to sing it to this audience.
It is a very personal song, recorded while I was pregnant with my youngest son, Luke. He was diagnosed in utero with a debilitating handicap and it was suggested that I seriously consider an abortion. It turned out that the tests were very badly mistaken and Luke is a brilliant young man who is about to graduate from Gymnasium with a major in economics and philosophy.
And he is so full of LIFE.

Happy Birthday to Me !

You know, you can say what you will about Facebook, (and I definitely feel mixed pickles about FB) but one thing is really cool: I've had almost 100 wonderful birthday wishes come my way over FB today. So many people, some I know and some I don't, thinking, at least for a few moments on me, and caring enough to write a few words to me on my birthday. Some even sending me pictorial wishes like this one from Feli Wolf. Happy Cae!

I got a card today from my darling neighbors and I'm considering writing a song lyric using these thoughts from Mutter Theresa:

DAS LEBEN IST EINE CHANCE

Das Leben ist eine Chance, nutze sie.
Das Leben ist Schönheit, bewundere sie.
Das Leben ist ein Traum, verwirkliche ihn.
Das Leben ist eine Pflicht, erfülle sie.
Das Leben ist ein Spiel, spiele es.
Das Leben ist kostbar, gehe sorgfältig damit um.
Das Leben ist Liebe, erfreue dich an ihr.
Das Leben ist ein Rätsel, durchdringe es.
Das Leben ist Versprechen, erfülle es.
Das Leben ist eine Hymne, singe sie.
Das Leben ist Herausforderung, stelle dich ihr.
Das Leben ist ein Abenteuer, wage es.
Das Leben ist Glück, verdiene es.
Das Leben ist das Leben, verteidige es.

Sorry, those of you who can't read German, but I'm not going to spend my birthday translating this. Maybe later.....

Thomas Mark, the audio engineer at Kangaroo Studios called me to wish me happy birthday and told me this joke-
So a Catholic priest, a Muslim and a Rabi were having a discussion about "When Does Life Begin". The Catholic priest said that Life begins the moment of conception. The Muslim countered and said that Life begins the moment the baby takes its' first breath after birth, and the Rabi said, "No, no, Life begins when the kids finally leave the house and the dog dies!"
And on that note........

Strawberry Time!

The strawberries are here!!! Time to get out the very best home-made shortcake recipes. Yesterday I discovered a new recipe, tried it, and now it's definitely one of our favourites. So easy and so deliciously warm and comforting on a cool spring afternoon.
First of all, you gotta have a nice big basket of ripe, aromatic, juicy strawberries. Pare them, cut them into quarters, then sprinkle with sugar and let them sit so that they make lots of juicy sweet syrup in the bottom of the bowl.
And here is the shortcake recipe:
It says it serves 8. Ha ha ha. It served 3 at my house!
2 1/2 cups flour
1/3 cup butter
1/3 cup sugar
2 1/2 teaspoons of baking powder (backpulver)
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup milk

Preheat the oven to 425° F (220°C).
In a food processor, combine the flour, butter, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Process until it looks like course meal. Add the milk and just barely pulse until moistened. Don't overprocess.
Turn out the dough onto a lightly floured surface. (I turned it out directly onto baking parchment) With floured hands, pat it into a 4 x 8 inch (10 x 20 cm. ) rectangle. Cut the dough into 8 (or in our case 3! ) squares with a floured knife. Sprinkle with a little bit of sugar, slide the parchment sheet onto a baking sheet and bake for 25-30 minutes until golden.
Cool just a bit. Split the biscuits in half with a serrated knife and layer with the berries and a lot of whipped cream.
Be sure to enjoy this while the shortcakes are still warm. That is the divine-ness of it.

Let me know what you think.

Reconciliation

In 1043 Earl Leofric and his wife, Lady Godiva (The one who rode naked through the streets of Coventry to protest the heavy taxes her husband had imposed on the people. Her protest turned out to be very effective!) endowed the building of a small Benedictine monastary in Coventry, England. By the 14th century, it had grown into one of the largest parish churches of the country and was officially raised to the status of St. Michael's Cathedral.
On November 14, 1940, in an air attack by the German Luftwaffe, the cathedral was demolished except for, amazingly, the tower and the underground crypts. It was decided to not tear down the ruins of the church, but to leave them as a memorial and build a new Cathedral right next them.
Last week, Eddie and I were able to visit St. Michael's Cathedral. I don't know when I have been in a setting that was so peaceful and at the same time so majestic. And each piece of artwork has been carefully chosen to induce thoughtful meditation.
The ongoing theme in the church is that of reconciliation. "to reconcile: To re-establish friendship, to settle or resolve a dispute, to bring oneself to accept." Now that is a very large order for a people to experience reconciliation with the people who destroyed their lives and their beloved cathedral.
From the smoldering embers of the bombed church were taken 3 charred iron nails from the roof to be formed into the shape of a cross. This has become a symbol of peace and reconciliation for the people of Britain and copies of this cross have been sent around the world.
The first recipient of the "Cross of Nails" was the Kaiser Wilhelm Gedächtniskirche in Berlin. How appropriate! The Gedächtniskirche in Berlin was also nearly destroyed in air attacks by the British. Many lives were lost and a beautiful and ancient church was bombed almost to the ground. The ruins of the original church have also been kept as they were as a memorial to the tragedy of war. And in that church there sits a "Cross of Nails". An exact copy of the one in Coventry.
2 Corinthians 5:
¹⁷Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.

¹⁸Now all these things are from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation,

¹⁹namely, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and He has committed to us the word of reconciliation.

²⁰Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were making an appeal through us; we beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.

Something Bigger

I have now been on antibiotics for 7 days. I hate antibiotics for so many reasons, but I know that sometimes they save lives. My doctor, who is very stingy with his antibiotic prescriptions, has me on a 2 week treatment in the hopes of finally getting rid of a nasty and painful sinus infection and bronchitis.
You know, if I had a normal job, ths would be no big deal. But tomorrow and Saturday I have 2 concerts with 4yourSoul. One in Knittlingen (not far from Karlsruhe) and one in Leihgestern- close to Giessen. The one tomorrow is completely sold out, but I understand that there are still tickets to be had for the Saturday concert. It's starts at 20:00 at the :
Ev. Kirche Leihgestern Kirchstrasse 35440 Linden For tickets: 06403-62078 oder 609928 Timo.Kloes@online.de kirche.leihgestern@t-online.de

I'm doing everything possible to be in good voice for these concerts. But, I would appreciate your prayers. So often I've felt something bigger than me take over a seemingly hopeless situation and turn it into something special. That "something bigger" is my God.
I haven't written in this blog since my concert in Siegen. Oh, my, what a special evening. I'm attaching a couple of pictures from that concert. I loved having Florian with me, and Luke on percussion, guitar and backings. And Eddie manning the merchandise table, with Mokka the dog at his feet. All my peeps! (Except my son in England, of course, but that would have been sort of a long trip for him)
Luke forgot to bring his e-guitar with him to the concert. I will not make a judgement call here, even though I am strongly inclined to! So, he had to borrow one from the young daughter of the concert organizer. (Thank you soooooo much!) It was freshly strung, and did not hold tuning even for the length of one song. So, Luke and I (and lots of other people) were in stitches at the sounds coming out of that instrument. Luke even laughed right out loud at one point, which got my giggle box turned over and almost ended the song. I love it when stuff like that happens!
I spontaneously asked whether anyone from our choir workshop from 2 weeks before were there in the audience. Several hands went up, so I asked them whether they would sing one of the songs with me that we had done together. And one after another came up to the stage to sing with me. And they just kept coming. Honestly, I think there were 25-30 singers on the stage singing "Liebe Trägt Uns Durch" with me. It was a very cool moment for me! I've included a picture of that moment.
I asked Eddie to sing "The Prayer" with me as the encore. What a roar of approval from the audience! Eddie is truly a monumental audio and visual experience!
Maybe I'll see you at one of the concerts. If so, cool! If not, I'll let you know how it goes......

so much for thawing.....

I thought winter was gone for good. Ha! Massive snowstorm yesterday. All my little spring flowers are covered with snow and ice. I hope they live over it.
This week I met a young woman.
Outside description: Tall, blonde, blue eyes, fantastic willowy figure, intelligent conversationalist, very well-dressed.
Inside description: Bitter, angry, disappointed, frustrated, and very sad.
Sort of like the picture of my little primrose you see above. What a beauty she was. But then she became encased in a layer of ice and snow.
After talking to the young woman for a while, I found out why she was like she was. Some might say, she has every reason in the world to be cold and bitter.
But I could see that God had given her so much. He even put people in her path to hold her and help her through her troubles.
Maybe you can relate to this young woman. Maybe you only feel the cold of winter right now, but you long for spring to finally break through and melt the ice.
I'm praying for the sun to break through..... for YOU !

Thaw

After flying home last night from Hamburg, it has taken me all day to get caught up on emails, business, bills, Lifeline mailings, etc. And now, whew, I can catch my breath and greet you all with a sunny first-golden-crocus-of-spring greeting. Yep, 2 of those beauties came up this morning in the garden. In Hamburg it was snowing yesterday and there were MOUNTAINS of plowed snow on every street corner and parking lot. The roads were icy and the wind was cold. So it is good to be back in the warmer region of the Rhine Valley.
Last Sunday was such a fun, but busy and tiring day. Eddie, my darling husband, drove me up to Siegen to do a concert with a volunteer choir of 130 voices. They and their band had chosen the repertoire for the concert and there were lots of oldies but goodies for me to take out and dust off. In the dusting, I discovered that we were to do an old favorite "Jericho". I had recorded this in 1990, or thereabouts as a duet with Henning Rauhut. I really haven't seen him since. But I decided to try to call him at an old telephone number I had for him to ask him to come to Siegen to sing this song with me again. The number was right and before I had finished my request, Henning said he would come. :)
I had no idea what I would find when I got there for the rehearsals. I kind of like that risk of the unknown! What I found was a wonderfully prepared band and a well-rehearsed choir and lots of very happy and joyous people. And Henning Rauhut. Oh boy, did we have fun!
Sabine Heilmann is an excellent choir director and we just clicked. The choir was so flexible and spontaneous in spite its' size. And the band around keyboarder Martin Decker, outdid themselves.
On Monday I had a 4yourSoul concert at the Kammertheater in Karlsruhe. The concert has been sold out for about 2 months already, so there was no point in telling you about it beforehand! :) We invited a guest to perform with us. His name is Dino Soldo. www.dinosoldo.com What a musician! He has played all kinds of instruments for all kinds of great artists through the years. Saxophone, clarinet, harmonica, and electronic wind instrument played for Leonard Cohen, Ray Charles, Beyonce, Lionel Richie, Ernie Watts, Woody Allen, Lou Rawls and 4yourSoul. He just blew us away and inspired us to sing like we've never sung before. What an unforgettable concert that was.
On Tuesday we flew to Hamburg and I spent the afternoon at my favorite bead atelier- Maddy Popper. www.maddypopper.de The owners of the store allowed me exclusive access to their treasure of beads from all over the world. And I went a little bit crazy there for about 3 hours. You will see the purchases from that afternoon popping up in Lifelines now for a while.
On Wednesday we pre-recorded a talk show for Bibel TV. Florian, Eddie and I were interviewed by an interesting man, Wolfgang Severin, who is a Catholic priest in Brussels. Honestly, we could have visited with him for hours and hours. We had as many questions for him as he did for us. I don't know when it will be shown on television, but I'll try to keep you posted.
So, what about Margot Käßman? Forget the fact that she was the first female Bishop of the Protestant Church in Germany. She is the mother of 4 daughters. I, as a mother, cannot imagine getting drunk, much less getting drunk and then getting behind the steering wheel of a car! Lord have mercy! She had to have drunk 1 liter of wine to have as much alcohol as she had in her blood.
What a shame. We met her 2 weeks ago when we sang in Berlin for the EPD 100-year celebration. She is so intelligent, sharp, clever, funny and wise. What in the world happened?
So, moving on......
I will try to put a radio interview on to this blog that Eddie and I did last week with Michael Wieland from Radio Herob. I'm not making any promises that this will work. I am pretty clutzy when it comes to such technical things. See if this works:
https://www.mydrive.ch/download/54264775
Radio Horeb interview with Cae and Eddie
Wishing you a Great Thaw!

First listenings for "Inner Sanctum".

"Inner sanctum" Hiermit möchten wir Ihnen mitteilen, dass wir die CD am 16.02.2010 vorgestellt haben/vorstellen werden, und zwar

-	zwischen 12 und 13 Uhr in unserem aktuellen Magazin Halbzeit;
-	zwischen 18 und 18.45 Uhr in der Sendung Journal.

Zu hören auf ERF Radio: - über Satellit ASTRA analog 10,906 GHz v (7,38 MHz), - über Satellit ASTRA digital 12,460 GHz h (27.500 Ksym/s), - in Berlin über DVB-T Kanal 59, 778 MHz, - in einigen Bundesländern auch über Kabel, - weltweit im Internet unter www.erf.de. Außerdem ist der Beitrag als MP3-Download im Internet verfügbar: http://www.erf.de/index.php?content_item=5342&node=1104.

Freundliche Grüße ERF Medien e. V. Birgit Becker Internet-Redaktion Radio Berliner Ring 62 35576 Wetzlar Tel.: 06441 957-346 Fax: 06441 957-51-140 E-Mail: webmasterradio@erf.de www.erf.de/radio ERF - Der Sender für ein ganzes Leben.

Stunningly Sufficient

Sometimes, when I see the Holy Spirit working, I can only stand back and shake my head in awe and disbelief at how it works.
I had a doctor's appointment today. (routine- nothing special) As I was walking out the door of my house I had the crazy idea of taking my doctor (who I've been going to for 25 years!!!) one of our new CDs, "Inner Sanctum". I don't know why I thought to do that because I've never done that before.
When I was called into his office he seemed to be sort of tired and seemed somehow aged. But friendly as always. Before the examination began, I handed him the CD. He was pretty surprised and asked what it was. I told him it was a new duet CD of me and Eddie and I wanted to give it to him. He was so pleased and turned it over to read the song titles. His eyes kind of misted over and he thanked me kindly.
After the exam, I noticed that his wife wasn't at the front desk as she usually is. I asked after her. He took me back into his office and told me with tears in his eyes that his wife has been recently diagnosed with cancer. She has had 2 rounds of chemotherapy so far. And many more to go. And she told him that the worst part of the chemotherapy was the sounds of the chemotherapy machines.
So, yesterday her husband(my doctor) bought her a disc-man. And promised to find a CD that would soothe and comfort her during her next chemotherapy session. And then he looked me straight in the eye with tears rolling down his face and said that this CD would be absolutely perfectly suited to his wife's needs. And he said he was so moved by the fact that I thought to bring him this CD today.
My eyes were wide with surprise at how stunningly sufficient God can provide for our needs. Often from unexpected sources. And I had the privilege of being a tool today to minister to my beloved doctor and his dear wife in a way I could not have imagined.

In the presence of the Queen.....

Oh my, oh my, oh my, it was a tension-filled week last week. Eddie and I were asked to sing for the Queen of Germany. Oh, you didn't know Germany had a Queen? Well, it most definitely does! Queen Angie entered the Museum for Communication in Berlin last Wednesday with the pomp and pageantry befitting her royalty. The only difference being that Queen Angie prefers to wear business suits and doesn't wear a hat.
She spoke at the Evangelische Presse Dienst 100 year Jubilee for about 20-25 minutes while Eddie and I danced backstage to keep our energy levels up while waiting for our entrance. Then, just as it sounded like Fr. Merkel was about to finish her speech, Eddie and Florian disappeared. And I started to panic. And I waited and waited, but they were gone. And I waited some more and finally sent someone to look for them. I started pacing and having mini heart attacks. They showed up calmly, not knowing that I was ripping my hair out. Eddie had gone back downstairs to the dressing room to sneak another look at the song text and Florian had gone downstairs to send a text message to someone. Good grief!!!
A few moments later the Queen finished her speech and we expected her to be escorted straight out of the building. But she took her seat in the front row and stayed for us to sing! And then she left.
We were pretty happy about that!
During the evening the Bischöfin Käßman also spoke. And she reminded us that ancient texts like "The Lord's Prayer" are such a comfort to so many people in this day and time. Eddie and I can only agree with that. We are amazed at how many people have been touched by the old lyrics of the songs on our new album "Inner Sanctum". There is a great need to feel connected to the generations of the faithful in this turbulent time. So many things change so quickly. Communication is faster than we can process. What seems important today, can be trivial tomorrow.
But some things have stood the test of time.
After the tension and the long hours traveling to and from Berlin and nursing my son who developed a stomach virus, I was pretty rattled by the time Friday rolled around.
And on Saturday I had such a treat to look forward to- a lovely lady named Sabine Schober invited me to immerse myself in a couple of pampering moments in her cosmetic salon. www.timeless-beauty-home.de Oh, the joy! After 2 1/2 hours of massaging, steaming, scrubbing and praising the Lord together, I left feeling very soft, very relaxed and very privileged. She's great!

What do YOU think?

Life is pretty simple: You do some stuff. Most fails. Some works. You do more of what works. If it works big, others quickly copy it. Then you do something else. The trick is the doing something else.

Tom Peters

Memories

I've been very very busy creating a new line of jewelry for my Lifelines collection. I call them Memories. They are just the small precious parts of a Lifeline that I have slipped onto a stainless steel rod. Each one has at least one of the artisan-produced artwork glass beads that I have collected from artists around the globe. Each one of them is unique and beautiful- just like the wearer! I've put a big ring at the top of each Memory so that it can be worn even on large chains or cords.
If you're interested in seeing what they look like you can see them at my online Web shop: www.lifelines-caegauntt.de Just click on the "Shop" button and then choose "Memories" from the drop-down category menu.

EPK

Yesterday Eddie and I traveled (again in the snow) to Landau to finish the filming of the EPK. (Electronic Press Kit) The guy who is filming and directing, and producing and lighting and making coffee is haegar. That is really not his real name, but nobody but his mother knows what his real name is.
He already filmed our final Christmas concert in Heidelsheim and now he was collecting some statements from us to cut into the EPK. He asked us about the album and about each other and about life and the meaning of it and we tried our best to sound wise and clever and funny and all that in German. I think we mostly sounded a little weak in the head. But, hey. Now it is his job to cut and paste all this together to make us look good.
He had a little room set up all draped in white and lit brightly. Hopefully that will make the wrinkles look a little less obvious and our complexions a little brighter. Every little bit helps. He stood precariously on a big tall table with the camera. Nobody can say we are not all very flexible.
After that he forced us into our coats and scarves and gloves and across the street to a little park to film us walking in the snow. He also took a couple of stills. Here is one of them. (above)
We look like we're in love.....

Media Blitz

Tomorrow: Big Media Day for Cae & Eddie, organized by Gerth Medien and ERF. We've been invited to interviews for ERF TV Shows "Calando", "Werthe Gäste" and Radio Shows "Aufgeweckt" and "Pop". So we are relaxing today, getting our beauty sleep, eating salads and trying to lose 20 pounds by tomorrow. :)
What we should actually be doing is reading the Bible and thinking of wise things to say. And praying that God will use us to speak to someone's heart. And being thankful for the opportunity to actually do these shows. This kind of "Media Blitz" has never been organized for us before. It shows me how much Gerth medien and ERF believe in our new album, "Inner Sanctum".
We are humbled. We are thankful. We are excited.
And I will definitely try out my new hot hair rollers......

Tremors

This morning I was out scraping ice off my windshield in the pre-dawn darkness and complaining about it. And I got in the car to drive to school, turning the heat up to full and thawing out nicely, thank you very much. I was listening to a radio interview with Bob Poff, the director of the Salvation Army in Haiti. He was describing the situation in the middle of Port-au-Prince. Horrific. Beyond comprehension. So painful to even contemplate.
Suddenly I felt very small and ashamed to have complained and lost my temper over having to scrape my car windshield.
When I got to school, I felt particularly magnanimous towards the children. They always respond to generosity of spirit by being particularly charming, and pleasant, and teachable.
I felt tremors from the Caribbean earthquake in Karlsruhe, Germany.
Wishing you a reflective day.....

I left the candle in the above picture burning too long and the wreath caught on fire. I was sitting in the living room making Lifelines and glanced up to see flames shooting about a foot up in the air. I yelled and Eddie jumped up before I could move the beads out of my lap and grabbed it and ran (!) to the kitchen and put it under water. He let me clean up the mess of scorched and melted leaves and plastic.
I went up later to bed to find my side of the bed soaking wet. We puzzled for a long time over what in the world this could be. I was actually afraid to sniff it. :) But when I did, it smelled liked water. And we looked up, and the ceiling was dripping. It has snowed so much here and the wind has blown so hard that snow was blown up and under the roof tiles, piling up in the attic. As it melted, it found its' way through the ceiling paneling onto my side of the bed. (Lucky me! ) So, we got to tape plastic to the ceiling and change the sheets on the bed. The local roof specialist is coming to see what has to be done tomorrow.
Let's see, what else....? Oh yeah, Eddie's car was totally destroyed by a young driver who was driving too fast on this snow and ice. Neither of them was injured and we are thankful for that. But it meant finding a rental car for Eddie and now considering what kind of a car he can buy for the small amount of insurance money he will receive as compensation for his loss.
This year has gotten off to a dramatic start!
Today I recorded 3 demonstration tracks for Michael Heise. He used to play bass in my band. But since I don't have a band anymore, we hardly ever see each other. Lately, he's been writing a lot of music. I've written some texts for him. And he has hired me to record some of his compositions so that he can shop them around to producers and arrangers who are looking for repertoire for their artists. You never know!!! He might have written a hit!!!
Hope you're all staying nice and warm.

I feel like I have sailed over continents and swum oceans since my last blog entry. But actually it's just been a normal Christmas and New Year's for us.
Eddie, Luke, Florian and I had 7 wholly enjoyable Christmas concerts that were all sold out except for the huge 1200- seat Gedächtnis Kirche in Speyer. (and there were 600-700 people there)
Lifelines sold: 89 !
My son came home for Christmas- the first time in 7 years.
6 wonderful people came to stay at our house for a week. We went to the opera, rode in a big horse-drawn sled, visited a gorgeous castle, ate in Karlsruhe's tallest restaurant, shot off mega-tons of fireworks on New Year's Eve, sang karaoke, and drank astonishing amounts of beer.
Someone threw up in our basement on New Year's Eve.
The dog stuck a stick in her eye and now she's partially blind.
After 9 washing machine loads of bed linens and guest towels we are finally caught up in the laundry department.
As you can see from the picture, my Christmas candle has almost burned itself down and out, so that means it is time to take down the Christmas decorations. Time to get back to work. Time to go back on Weight Watchers.
Ugh.........
I need a vacation.