Category: Moments

Why am I feeling sad?  This easter has been special. Things change … In the mountains we had warm degrees like you would not believe. Back home the garden smiled at us as if was late May. You and I change too. The beautiful elderly in our lives are getting older … said with a warm and loving  smile. And in increasing need of care and love. I’m getting older too – in need of more love … said with an even bigger smile.

Today we woke up to disturbing realities in Sri Lanka. My first reaction was anger. Then fear. And love …  In my heart I feel sadness. This disturbing cruelty and madness cannot be eradicated with hugs and love alone. But if we could agree on one thing, and one thing only – to be kind, we would have turned the world into a more civilized place right there. We all come from different places, each and every one of us is unique … Yeah, I know … this is challenging …

Elvis Presley frequently introduced his great version of ‘Walk a Mile in My Shoes’ with this heartwarming excerpt from Hank Williams’ song ‘Men With Broken Hearts’:

“You’ve never walked in that man’s shoes or saw things through his eyes,
Or stood and watched with helpless hands while the heart inside you dies.
So help your brother along the road, no matter where he starts!
For the God that made you, made them too. These men with broken hearts!”

Love to all ❤️

Words and photography are to me a wonderful exercise in gratitude. To stop for a while. Breathe, feel. Give thanks. At the other end, we share our moments.

Via social media (Instagram in my case) we connect with people all over the world, the beautiful world we share. We learn … about differences in cultures, in politics, in behavior …  and accept those differences. 

These last few days have been weird. As a true believer in growth, I try to open up and take in some of what life delivers. From terror in New Zealand to ‘The International Day of Happiness’ – from a cyberattack on one of Norway largest companies, via the beautiful acceptance of our differences in ‘World Down Syndrome Day’, to the challenges in my personal and professional life … as a few examples. 

Now and then we need time, time to breathe, to charge …. The picture I share today is probably nothing to most of you. To me it represents a golden moment. A crisp, cold, sunny day …  alone, just Troy ‘the dog and me’ …  far away from all and everyone. There’s no place I feel more at ease than in the mountains. Skiing for hours. Letting go of all things I cannot do anything about. Accepting who I am, focusing on where to direct my energy in order to maximize my contribution.

My strong, warm and wild heart is grateful for everyday treasures, beautiful moments and find joy in even the smallest things. Let’s enjoy our moments, without turning our collective back to the pain in and of the world. It’s should not be either/or – it should be ‘exhale/inhale’. With love … ♥️

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A few days ago a baby boy was born into our family. Isak, a gorgeous little fellow, happily unaware of the serious challenges our wonderful world is facing. Isak will grow up with a loving mother and father, closely connected to nature. He was probably conceived on a mountain top, inside or outside an orange tent – overlooking a fantastic landscape. Hopefully he will learn to respect nature the way his parents do – and we all should be doing.

Those of you who follow my blog are familiar with my fascination for animals and elephants in particular. We have a lot to learn from elephants. Elephants are capable of a range of emotions, including joy, playfulness, grief and mourning. In addition, elephants are able to learn new facts and behaviours, mimic sounds that they hear, self-medicate, play with a sense of humour, perform artistic activities, use tools and display compassion and self-awareness. What truly matters is what elephants mean to themselves and to their environment. These majestic, gentle giants are full of wisdom. The greek philosoper Aristotle, said of elephants: “The beast which passeth all others in wit and mind.”  And still we are killing them.

“Elephant in the room” is a metaphor  – for an obvious problem that no one wants to discuss. We often talk about nature or animals as if it is ‘us’ vs. ‘them’. The truth is – we are all in this together, we are equals. Humans and nature are part of the same system. Depending on each other. The more people accept this and pay attention, the better chances we’ll have to make it through the ongoing climate changes together.

At this moment in life – and given the state of the world, a little child’s birth gets me really emotional. By showing each other respect, we can appreciate the joy of real elephants and a healthy life for generations to come.

Thank you for following my thoughts.❤️

“Hanne, hvorfor poster du et inspirerende innlegg som dette kun på Instagram? Hva med theotherear.no?” Spørsmålene kom i ulik drakt fra et par av mine følgere kort etter publisering.  Og sant nok – tankereisen og erfaringene kan være inspirasjon også for andre. Ai ai … så godt det er å bli oppfordret til deling selv av enkle budskap – som inneholder masse glede.  La oss kjøre på:

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9 months ago my nephew Thomas encouraged me to join Instagram. I think he even sold me up on the idea that it would be a “perfect match”. My first reaction was ‘no thanks, I want more time to do the things my body and soul longs for’. Things that clear my mind, make me feel stronger and ready for new challenges. 

After months in this so called  insta-world or ‘insta community’, I feel grateful. Instagram is so much more than posting a photo or two every day or week to get our dopamine-levels rising. On Instagram we share values, we share hope, we inspire and let ourselves be inspired. We are introduced to new perspectives, to people from different cultures, from far away countries. We show support and are grateful for the support given back to us.

There are so many beautiful people out there, and I would love to connect with more than the 500+ great people I have chosen to follow for now. But my genes are comfortable with this level. I need to feel connected, keep it at a level where time allows me to not only take a quick look, but to read some of the wonderful captions, to comment and learn. I do admire those of you with thousands of followers and the same amount to follow. Who use hours every day to feed us with new inspiration, being the fire in someones life. Who take the time to encourage those of us who are newbies, to go out there and share what we have and whom we are. To share joy, hope and love – from a beautiful world.

Happy vibes and a warm thankful smile to you all. ♥️

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A new year is coming up in just a few days, and I’m enjoying my favorites:
dark chocolate, espresso and a glass of serious red wine – or two – without hesitation. 😉 While pondering about what makes people spend time on new years resolutions.

Apropos resolutions and good intentions:
The picture above – taken today in front of our home – inspired a chain of thoughts about how each and every one of us can make a difference – be a link in the chain. Shall we focus on ‘me goals’ or ‘we goals’? Why not let 2019 be about ‘we goals’?
Inspire others to join us doing good things, share joy, hope, love, while having fun …♥️

 

“Vær ydmyk, akseptér at et fungerende fellesskap alltid står sterkt.” Med et varmt smil siterer jeg dette utdraget fra en krevende samtale forleden. Temaet for diskusjonen var faktisk krig. I krig spiller alle på lag mot et mål.

Som hovedbilde og symbol for mitt digitale fristed har jeg valgt elefanten. Ja, igjen med et smil. Hvorfor? De er – blant mye annet godt – eksponenter for nettopp et fungerende fellesskap.

Elefantene fascinerer både forskere og oss andre. De regnes blant de mest intelligente skapninger på jorden. Enkelte forståsegpåere mener faktisk at deres intelligens konkurrerer med menneskets.

Et særtrekk ved disse kloke vakre sterke dyrene vekker spesiell interesse hos meg. Les bare disse enkle stikkordene – verdt å dvele ved:

“Elefanten har særtrekk menneskearten har mye å lære av:  Ærlighet, fornuft, rettferdighetssans og respekt for stjernene, solen og månen.” [Amelia Meyer, Elephants Forever]

“The beast which passeth all others in wit and mind.” [Aristoteles]

Det store dyret vil fortsette å inspirere med sin klokskap og evne til å leve i pakt med hva som alltid har vært meningen med liv på jorden: Ærlighet og respekt.

Derfor – med nettopp ydmyk respekt: Takk til hver og en av dere som følger, deler og sender inspirasjon tilbake til meg.

Uten dere hadde ikke mitt enkle budskap nådd ut til så mange som statistikkene viser. Enkelte av dere kjenner min penn via Facebook, andre via Instagram. Som Instagram-bruker er jeg newbie. Tester ut om dette er for meg. Facebook har fått en pause i sommer, da tid ikke prioriteres til begge kanaler.

Facebook er tettere på, varer lenger, og ja – med en fast gruppe aktive venner og følgere føles det ofte som å være en del av en daglig nerve. Den nerven er det rart å være uten. Et savn. Men også godt. Uten tvil suger de ulike kanalene noe energi og oppmerksomhet fra oss alle. Samtidig tilfører den eller de kanalene vi velger, også mengder energi. Alt fra det nære familiære, til det faglige, til kultur og politikk. Vi skal ikke mene for sterkt om hvem, hva og hvorfor. Heller evne å vite hvorfor vi velger inn og ut.

I annen halvdel av august er jeg tilbake på Facebook og gleder meg til dèt.

Pennen er i toppform og jeg kjenner å havne langt utenfor hva som i dag er det egentlige budskapet:

Tusen hjertelig takk til deg som følger, inspirerer og deler. Mulig kan en blogg som falt i smak hos deg, glede, inspirere, eller også irritere en annen.  ♥️

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Sommerens tanker:

Love, belonging and joy
Drøm som virkemiddel
«That’s fire!» 
Mannen fra Tel Aviv 
Men, sånn er det bare 
Powerpack