India | The voice of my heart
THE VIDEO
When I embarked on the trip to Goa I didn't have the plan to make a video about it. I was going there to cook and I knew that this would be a very time-consuming and challenging job. Nevertheless, I had just bought my new iPhone 7 and wanted to play a bit with its video capabilities. I took shots here and there and made little clips that turned into some kind of diary of the trip. When I came home I played a bit with the material and was amazed at how well the clips looked. So I decided to search for some music and put everything together. This is the result. That you will see an iPhone 7 advertisement at the end is pure coincidence. When I filmed that billboard out of a car I couldn't see the actual ad until I had passed it. It was really one of the last shots I took on that journey.
The video was filmed entirely with an iPhone 7 with Filmic Pro, edited and color corrected in Final Cut Pro X with the regular color tools plus some film emulation from FilmConvert.
THE TRIP
In November 2016 I flew to Goa in India. Emma Henry, who I met as one of the mentors in my Jivamukti Yoga Teacher Training, and who I joined on a trip to faraway Mongolia, asked me to cook on one of her retreats.
When I got Emma's first message the whole trip seemed to be a bit crazy. Going all the way to India to cook on a Yoga retreat!?
I have been to India already two times and the South Indian kitchen is just delicious. To go all the way from Europe for that kind of work seemed not necessary.
My doubts weren't strong enough. Because of Emma, I had a few unforgettable experiences over the last two years and the next morning it was clear to me, that If Emma asked me, I would go and cook for her - wherever it might be.
My feeling was telling me that I was doing the right thing and I trusted that feeling: "Everything in my life is there for a reason." Sometimes I don't know why right away or where it might take me, but my life is full of these stories and I feel that realizing this is one of the big challenges in being a human being.
Especially at that time in my life, it was a very present theme.
I wanted to spend more time in Ibiza and felt that it was about time for me to leave Berlin and Germany. At the time I let go of many things and made space for new opportunities, but the direction in which I was heading wasn't clear all the time.
An unknown future and the question of wether I was making the right decisions were two companions that were not so easy to let go of.
Shortly before the journey, I had hosted my very first retreat, with my old friend Ian, in Ibiza. We had a really great week with wonderful beings and it felt like being together with a little family. I learned a lot in that time. Not only in the kitchen, but also in the moments with our guests. Still, it was a week that demanded a lot of time and effort in the preparation and the aim to stay present for our guests the whole time. Because we were a small group there was the extra challenge as Ian and I lost a bit of money.
I surely wasn't gonna make up for this in India. On the contrary, I had to turn down projects of two good clients. At the time that was painful. Nevertheless, I kept my trust. India helped me but also put me to the test.
At the time I arrived in India the government had just declared a monetary reform. This made the whole retreat preparation, like shopping for groceries, an adventure. There was hardly any cash available. People had to cue for hours at the bank or the atm to get a few banknotes for their daily expenses. In a society where the majority of transactions are made in cash that's quite a challenge. Shopping for groceries became dependent on the shop owners' trust in our landlord Karan to return on another day to pay them. With his help, we were able to manage. For e few days we bought almost everything on tick. Seeing and experiencing this I asked myself many times how such a situation would work out in western society.
However, this meant that I had to decide on a day to day basis what to cook, depending on how our money situation changed. Sometimes not knowing in the mornings if there was enough money to buy groceries for dinner or what would be available on the market.
One late afternoon I hurried for a speedy shopping trip to get a special ingredient that I desired. On my way to the only shop that had this specialty it happened. I slipped with my scooter and crashed into a car. The narrow road and some sand took away the grip of my wheels and the ease of an early evening sundowner ride. Suddenly I found myself covered in blood, surrounded by a group of excited Indians. Luckily I realized that my injuries were not too bad. My own sense of trust helped me to stay calm. Which also seemed to have been the case for the driver of the car. He seemed to be quite calm too which helped to keep the surrounding people quite calm too. Again it was Karan who came in as the guardian angel. With his help, we managed to negotiate the damage and solve everything right on the spot. Having all my Euro currency at hand at that moment, although I haven't actually thought to use it for something, it was quite helpful for a very fast and easy negotiation.
My only take away from that accident was a few grazes and a sprained ankle. My hands were still intact and I was able to return to the kitchen, but not into the pool.
While my own perception of that trip was linked a lot to my relation to trust, I was also able to observe this, in the guests, in our host Karan, and in Emma. The guests came all the way from their everyday life to a faraway place to spend a week with mostly strangers. Karan and his staff, who seemed more like an extended family, opened their house and home to host mostly strangers. Seeing how everybody connected with each other or with myself was a beautiful and rewarding experience. I was able to listen to their stories and their motivation to come all the way on that journey and I was grateful for their feedback on how they appreciated all the love and effort we put into creating this week as a special time for the guests.
It wasn't just Karan who opened up his house for us, but also Eugenia, who is the good soul of the house and who entrusted me her kitchen while taking care of us from dusk till dawn and being always curious about my cooking and helping me all day long. Her three kids always stayed around the house and helped whenever needed or they just stayed around, like in an uncle's house, and followed our activities curiously.
Even though I couldn't attend the yoga classes, because this was the busiest time in the kitchen, I got to know Emma all new.
On our trip to Mongolia, the camera was always an object through which I observed her. This is always the challenge when you follow people closely for a while with the camera. This time it was different. The food and the wish to create this special space for the guests created a connection. Trusting me to cook for her and the guests without ever having tasted one of my dishes was very honoring. Seeing how much love and attention she put into the smallest detail, to make the retreat very special for the guests, was a big inspiration and motivation. As a reward, we enjoyed the warm Goan nights that ended with long conversations by the pool or chanting mantras in the yoga shala.
Once more I could feel how powerful it can be going all the way to a distant place on a retreat and connect with others. A retreat can open a window to a new life. Showing you possibilities that otherwise might stay hidden or unnoticed. Doors can open up to new or forgotten paths that we wouldn't dare to walk alone. When we are trapped in our day to day life, surrounded by the same people, we mostly don't realize that we can let go of things that don't feel good so we can create space for something that brings more joy and happiness into our lives.
Finding a teacher like Emma, who is so deeply rooted in the practice and the teachings, but still so accessible and full of life experience, is the key to create that space that transforms a possibility. Being able to support this with my food and the love I put into the creation of it is a big gift of life.
This trip gave me trust in my path and once again let me feel how everything in my life is there to let me learn and grow. It encouraged me to follow my dream to create that space for others, with friends and teachers who inspire me. Once more I realized how a kitchen can be a church. My main ingredient is love, I cook with love, I serve with love and I am nourished with love.
India - the voice of my heart
