Sharon X-Mas Pudding

I got this newsletter from Victoria Boutenko the other day about Persimmons aka Sharon fruits. She writes about how nutritious and healthy those fruits are and shared some Christmas recipes.

There is one I just made now, and I feel so astonished about it! It's called Persimmon Pudding and all you have to do is blend 4 Sharons with 1 cup of water and 3 pitted dates and add a pinch of allspice. Blend very well, and then let it set for 15 minutes. I mean seriously, you would never have guessed what happens: it gets a really jelly-like consistency, as if there was gelatin or something in it! :) So now I will just snuggle up in my blanket and enjoy a Persimmon pudding deluxe while watching the snow fall...Hmmmm, yummy! :) 

Uhhhuh, 'The Cold Swedish Winter...

...is right outside, and I just want somebody to hold me through the night.'

Looking at that snowstorm out there, it's no wonder that Jens Lekman wants somebody to kiss and warm the pain away. But I LOVE it! Woohoo! Winter is finally here, and its just SO beautiful! I love the snow! There's a big white blanket covering this town, and its a real 'winter wonderland' if you ask me. Big fat snowflakes falling from the sky, covering everything up in fifteen feet of pure white snow... ;) Today I walked through Gamla Stan totally white, and it was just so amazing, the sky wasn't even as dark anymore, ha ha, it felt more like grey, and the white on the ground was reflecting the streetlights. It was breathtakingly beautiful. Something like that, just better (gosh, I really gotta bring my camera and take some pictures!) Then I found the Julmarknad, one of the Christmas markets, and my joy was complete. Like in a fairytale, I was so overexcited...I just wish I could have shared this with someone... :)

And right when the days are getting shorter and the nights darker, Stockholm comes up with the best film festival ever! The Stockholm Film festival is still running until the 30 November and I am trying to see as many films as possible! :) This weekend I was guest host for the Russian director Andrei Konchalovski and his wife, who came here to introduce his latest film 'Gloss', a critical observation of the (Russian) fashion industry and beyond. I had a great time making them have the best stay ever here in Sweden and I trust they enjoyed it :)

Tonight I have seen 'Rachel Getting Married', the new film with Anne Hathaway starring as an ex-addict messing up the wedding of her sister Rachel. Very convincing and touching, it was a great premiere and I even cried, which doesn't happen too often in films ;) It reminded me of Lars von Trier's 'Festen' at times... I still wanna see 'Julia' and 'Filth and Wisdom' and sooo many more! Hmmmmmm ... :) We are SO blessed! :)

So if you're around in STHLM now, don't miss the festival, it's SO great and enjoy the cold Swedish winter, its right outside, and maybe you even have someone to hold you through the night... ;)

Exciting Times...

...are ahead of us. We are in the middle of tremendous changes on this planet. The old systems seem to collapse bit by bit and a new consciousness is spreading rapidly. People seem to become more aware every day, and even though it seems a lot of things on this planet are getting worse, we must not forget about the dualities/polarities, which means at the same time lots of things are also getting a lot better. New hopes are arising in the west (US A's next president), the exploding raw food movement, eco-villages popping up everywhere, the hype about the Anastasia books and people realizing that their health is the most important thing, thus investing into raw gadgets, despite the financial 'crisis'.

My life has been transformed so extremely in the past few weeks and months, it is like living magically, manifesting and synchronicities are happening on a daily basis, we are creating heaven on earth from within! ;)

Since I started my gratitude journal of which I spoke about a few weeks ago, things have been continuously floating upstream, for which I am so grateful! We are SO blessed! :) I have also started to create a vision book, and things are just happening...its pure magic, this stuff really works. You can read all about it HERE.

Now that the days are getting shorter and the nights longer, it also feels like it is time to make oneself feel safe and sound at home, address old fears and patterns that keep you back and let them go, take lots of rest, reflect on your life, where are you now, what can you learn from past experience, where do you wanna go, what do you want to show up in your life? 

Reading Rilke and going for long walks in the forest also seems like a good idea ;)

I am currently reading lots of course literature on Ingmar Bergman, which I love, but in between I am totally taken by David Wolfe's latest book 'Amazing Grace', which I can recommend to everyone. You can get it HERE. In one sentence, it's about living in pure magic and tuning into the flow of the universe and it teaches you 'how to become a superhero and have the best day ever'! Awesome, loving it! :)

I am so excited and will share more in the near future hopefully.

Until further notice, celebrate everything! :D

ancient wisdom

'Nothing is either good or bad, but thinking makes it so.' That is by William Shakespeare, but who knows, he got his inspiration from someone before him too.

The point is that the message is very powerful, we can let everything be as it is, as the universe, oneness, has delivered it. We needn't judge the situation, everything has being and purpose, everything is the way it is meant to be. Just let go and trust, then a higher power will come into play that will guide and protect you.

Many blessings, 

Nadja

Projection

I had a significant experience today: in a tutorial with my teacher, I felt really small and insignificant, almost stupid.

I got angry because I felt she acted smug and condescending.

Well, later on I remembered that no one can make me feel stupid, how I feel depends on the decisions I make and how I interpret my reality. She is not responsible for my feelings. My happiness does not depend on someone else's behaviour, but on my interpretation of it.  See Kay Pollak in his book 'Growing from Personal Encounters' or sth. like that. (I don't know the exact English term.) Happiness is a decision we make. I choose how I react, loving or in a negative way. This affects my feelings.

Thoughts have  a creative power. I am responsible for my thoughts. I can change my thoughts about myself and others. (Or I might even try not to believe anything at all and stop mentally labeling people and situations) What I think about someone else tells more about me than about the other person.

Philosopher's notes to be continued

haha, while listening to the free download MP3 file 'its not about the money' on the Philosophers Notes website earlier on, I remembered that I wanted to share some of my personal notes here with you. So now I will come back to that! ;)

Today I wish to tell you this: 

Instead of focusing on getting the LOVE, ABUNDANCE, PEACE and FREEDOM that you (might?) want, be the love, abundance, peace and freedom instead. 

This is because the universe constantly mirrors your beliefs. I you think and act like you already have what you want, you will get that. If you're in a state of wanting, or fear, the universe will always show you situations in which you will see your wanting. This applies to every aspect of your life, be it relationships, career, money, home, experiences....

Be the change you want to see in the world, and it will happen (as Gandhi has put it).

Gratitude Journal

There is something I really wanna share with you now, since it really excites me. :)

Its been a tough few weeks for me, lots of stress and worries and lack of trust and all. I think I was just demanding too much of myself and resisted feeling low or sad. That created lots of confusion and tension, and I created challenging situations in my life. Maybe there was a bit of a culture shock after all, which I just did not see as such. But now I have consciously decided to stop this destructive pattern and really life life to the full, trust in the universe and be blissful. 

Today, I had an interview with the staff of  Stockholm Film Festival this year, where I want to volunteer. It looks like I will take care of one of the guests like a director or famous actor visiting the festival. In the past years, guest were no one less than Quentin Tarentino, Eliza Kazan and Jean-Luc Godard! So this is exciting stuff! I will report more when the time has come. The festival will be from 20-30 November 08. 

This is just one example of how the universe constantly supports our goals and heart-felt wishes. Life is, after all, not out to get us, but rather wants our happiness. The laws of the universe bend for LOVE.

The universe is abundance, constantly wanting to give. We just seem to have  a problem feeling worthy enough to accept this for us and being properly grateful. 

Who do you like giving to? Those who are happy and grateful for it or those who are mean? I guess I know the answer. ;) So shift your focus from lack to abundance and start seeing all the great things you have in your life already, and just by being grateful for these, you will attract more of the good stuff into your life. The exercise is simple: go out and buy a special empty book to write in, and then make the commitment of writing 30 things in there you are grateful for, every day. This is incredibly humbling, helping you to stop, think and really appreciate life's gifts!  You get more of what you focus on! Energy goes where attention flows. Once you have made the commitment, more abundance will come into your life. This is FUN! I feel such high vibrations now, love and gratitude are the forgotten powers that can magically transform your life in no time! 

Happy creating! All love,

Nadja

Välkommen till Stockholm!

Hej!

Sorry for not posting anything for a while, I was just so sucked up in my new life in Stockholm that I barely had a chance to go to the computer for long. 

One day, just after my arrival, I went to the wonderful Café String in Södermalm and picked up some random magazine to read a bit. It turned out to be Stockholm's gay magazine, unfortunately in Swedish, but there was one article right in the middle, titled 'Welcome to Stockholm', which was in English. Reading it, I nearly peed my pants laughing! It was written in such a funny way, Swedes do seem to have a great sense of humour, even or especially if the joke is on them. 

So I thought I would definitely have to share some of the tidbits of this article with you.

By the way, I got to watch some Swedish comedy the other day, and it was hilarious! Here in Sweden, TV is peppered with comedic references to Sweden and its people, probably because they have such a clearly defined international image: 'They're clever! They're beautiful! They watch dull films!' ;) This makes them perfect for jokes (like in ''Will and Grace'' when Will relates to a group of unruly children: 'You guys want to watch four hours of Swedish cinema? Then behave yourselves!') :D

So coming back to the article, it says about Swedish perception in an international context:

'The ancient Norse mythology about hammer-wielding gods has been replaced by a modern naughty mythology about Absolut-drinking Swedes who love to throw off their clothes and have sex in meadows before going home to watch Bergman films and commit suicide.' 

Haha, there is something to it, since Swedes love what they call 'summering': as soon as the first rays of sunshine come out, people get their kits off and suck up the sun as much as possible, it comes close to a collective sunshine-worshipping-which is understandable, considering the fact that it almost never gets light during the winter, apart from a good four hours of daylight during the cold season. :)

Swedish men in particular seems to have a pretty distinct feminine side to them: they know about food, wine-and hair gel. Characteristics that might be taken as links to homosexuality-sensitivity, gentleness, creativity, a fondness for euro-pop-are considered normal masculine behaviour here. At least in Stockholm, straight men dye their hair, wear Gucci sunglasses, and regularly drop by the fragrance department at NK (a large department store here).

What I find most amazing is the absence of attitude. It goes against the national character to think that you're better than anyone else. They are just so-nice! To quote the paper again: 'The Swedish family is, on the whole, a happy one.' No one is excluded, everybody is treated equally-at least that is how it is meant to be.

As the article closes, a big praise on Sweden cannot be missed-naturally:

'Sometimes being in Sweden feels like being caught in the latest X-Men movie. Could Swedes represent the next stage of human evolution? They're that bit taller, that bit handsomer, that bit less concerned with traditional ideas of gay and straight. They even have a secret way of communicating with each other (its called Swedish ;). And in the summer months, when the light sparkles on the water and the sun comes up before 4am, they do what all good superheroes do: They tear off their outer clothing and race to where they're needed.'

I can only totally agree with that! So come on guys, get your kits off and come to the land of eternal sunshine on the spotless (Swedish) mind ;).