Rubber bands are used to hold things together or in the past we used them to roll up magazines and thus supply them or pass them on, etc. I find such a rubber band somehow fascinating: depending on the edition, it is very fine and yet very functional and for its fineness, I find it enormously tear-resistant and strong and just: functional. Since I have no idea how it is produced, I am also fascinated by the fact that I don't see a seam in the band. Or just to come up with the idea and implement it, to create such a ribbon. Remarkable. Of course, if overstretched and if they become porous, the bands can also tear. But then either the life span is used up and the tear is justified or there has been abuse. A human life therefore has many parallels for me with the rubber band: in all its simplicity, a great work. But also with an expiry date and not suitable for abuse.

I wish you an extraordinary day!

Icy roads can occur in winter. This can be very dangerous. Appropriate tread is required on vehicles to prevent them from sliding and endangering themselves and others. The smoother the surface or the softer, the deeper and more pronounced the tread should be in order to have the best possible grip. If I transfer the example to social circumstances, I notice in our multi-culti and pluralistic world that somehow everything goes and is allowed. Temporal gender identity and other things. To me it seems like a very slippery ground where just nothing is solid anymore. I don't want to offend anyone and I certainly don't want to judge anyone. It just feels that way to me. And it helps me to move in this context with a clear profile, a clear opinion. Not in a condemning way, but with the freedom to express my own clear opinion, regardless of the topic.

I wish you an extraordinary day!

Let's talk about coffee today from the point of view of what it takes for us to enjoy it - could of course also be tea or another product. When I treat myself to a coffee at a vending machine or at home, the process is quite simple. But what is behind it all! There are the coffee farmers who, as professionals, grow, ripen and harvest the coffee beans with their work. Then there is the transport from the country of origin to us with the necessary care. At our place, the beans are roasted and packed, possibly already ground. And in this process chain, everyone involved is a professional in their field and responsible for the best result. Assuming I take this as a model for my daily actions and relationships - do I also try so hard to give the best or do I focus on getting the greatest possible yield for myself with the least possible effort? How is that for you?

I wish you an extraordinary day!

You may also be one of those who like croissants. That's how I feel. There are different parts of the croissant: the crispy and rather concentrated thin ends and then in the middle the airy thick belly of still with a small crispy dough corner on top - ideally. Or perhaps everyone has their own preferences as to what makes a good croissant - whether the traditional or style or crusta or chocolate or whatever. But the fact is: I could simply bake the same amount of dough flat and serve it that way - and the effect or enjoyment factor would - I suspect - not be as high or different. So the HOW plays a role: that the croissant is shaped and baked exactly as you know it and not differently. Transferred: the HOW is just as important as the WHAT. How you say something is also important, not just what you say. Perhaps important for you today.

I wish you an extraordinary day!

At my work, we share many files with each other and also edit them together. This means that only one person has write access at a time. For everyone else, the file is then not available for editing, but only for reading - or one can make a copy. I have caught myself time and again clicking through quickly when opening and then forgetting that I am working on a copy, saving my changes and forgetting that they are not even in the original document, but only in my copy. I think this happens so quickly in communication: we talk and explain something and automatically assume that our message will be received exactly as we meant and sent it. We always forget to check whether the content has actually arrived or whether it is only there in my copy. Perhaps there is a situation with you today that requires you to check whether your contribution has really arrived.

I wish you an extraordinary day!

Windows or sometimes entire building fronts are made of glass today. This has the effect that the rooms behind them become very bright, depending on the size of the glass surface. On the other hand, when viewed from the inside, large glass surfaces offer a wider view, a broader horizon, so to speak. In short: the more transparency, the more light and brightness and view. Always on the premise that the glass is not dirty or clouded. Jesus once makes a similar comparison with the eye and says: if your eye is clean, then so is your whole interior. So for me: if there is a large, clear surface of glass - the eye - then I also feel more comfortable inside - it is brighter - and from the inside I also see better, purer and more to the outside - instead of only my own inside. I find this comparison with the eye remarkable. How we see our environment and ourselves has a massive and concrete impact on our attitude, our inner being, our actions and thinking.

I wish you an extraordinary day!

Perhaps you have already thought about certain natural phenomena. Why does a river always have water, even though it is constantly flowing? Where do the winds come from and why is there no vacuum after a gust of wind? How can it be that it rains again and again and the clouds become sufficiently full again and again to give the soil and the plants the necessary moisture to have life? Today we are able to give scientific answers to most of these questions. But I believe that we are falling short. It's like reducing a great story simply to the letters and the printed paper. The latter are only vehicles for the great content. And that's how it seems to me with the natural events I mentioned. The great miracle that they happen at all is greater than their explanation. They are witnesses for me of a great Creator.

I wish you an extraordinary day!

This input does not really make too much sense in English because it is some kind of play on words in German. Nevertheless I use it for today. I came across something strange the other day through a friend: there the term reconciliation was brought up along with glory and team as a problematic term in terms of gender-appropriate wording. It had never occurred to me that reconciliation might have something to do with son and therefore be distinctly masculine. But I liked the idea: reconciliation as a process of becoming a son. To make it clear - and of course this is not at all correct in terms of language and content. But it takes the strange original argument further: if I seek the opposite process of enslavement, I come to reconciliation. So: instead of becoming a slave and thus unfree, I come to reconciliation via reconciliation, to the free position as a child in a family with all the rights and also duties that this free childhood entails compared to the slave state. I still like the thought.

I wish you an extraordinary day!

Doors are access points to new rooms or buildings. Regardless of whether the doors are locked or not - you have to open them. So an unlocked door is not access per se. Logical. But if I want to open the door - and I mean a conventional door that is anchored in the hinges on one of the two elongated sides - I have to step aside when opening it - otherwise I can't open the door past me and get in the way of myself doing what I want to do. This can also be used as a good illustration in a figurative sense: if I want to go new ways or get to know new areas, it may be that I first have to take myself back, stand aside, so that the door through which I want to go can be opened. In this way I can avoid - again allegorically - standing in my own way. Perhaps this illustration will help you in a current situation.

I wish you an extraordinary day!

We have a badge or large pin for carnival that you can put on your jacket. A kind of festival badge. In different variations and price categories. You can come to the carnival without the badge, but it is not welcome. With the price of the badge, you also support the event and all those who contribute time, energy and money. So it's a kind of appreciation for the people involved in the event. It's like that in life from time to time: you don't have to, but it would be respectful or appreciative. With today's optimisation, such recognition, especially when it costs something, is no longer opportune or self-evident. So if you find yourself in a situation where you benefit in some way - think about how you can give back some kind of appreciation. It may or may not be material or financial.

I wish you an extraordinary day!