A Fantastic Reading and Dinner for One.

Hello and Happy Tuesday. 

I heard not too long ago from a good friend and mentor that it is a great thing to have dinner alone one in a while. Book a table and all and take yourself out to dinner. And of course spend quality time with yourself. I did it and it was an awesome evening and it was not even planned. My mother’s friend told her today that there is a great reading at the Schloss Ehrenburg Andromedasaal (Ehrenburg Palace) which is beautiful by itself. The reading was by Dr. Wolfgang Weyers: “Der groesse Zauberer” (a Friedrich Rückert Biography) together with the Coburg Liest Literature Circle in Coburg  and in cooperation with the public library Coburg. I wrote an article about Friedrich Rückert here.  This reading, as many others, are in honor of his death 150 years ago. What made this reading so special was a musical framework of Rückert’s poems by Veronika Patterer (voice) and Diana Zohrabyan (piano).

“Der grosse Zauberer” (The big magician) – Rückert was called in Rome where he spend most of the summer in 1818. This name was also given to give because of his appearance. Rückert was almost 2m tall. Rückert reflects everything that moved him – in his poems, his view of god and the world and most importantly love and how he dealt with death. Rückert wrote approximately 20,000 poems! Many musicians were inspired by his poems and used them to compose songs. Many of his “Kindertodtenlieder” have been made into songs – mostly by Gustav Mahler. Many others used texts and lyrics by Rückert: Franz Schubert, Robert Schumann, Clara Schumann, Johannes Brahms or Richard Strauss. 

Dr. Wolfgang Weyers wrote this important and significant work this poet and orientalist and explains Rückert’s life through Rückert’s poems itself. Dr. Wolfgang Weyers is lecturer and professor for dermatology at the university Freiburg. He was a sports reporter for Das Erste Deutsche Fernsehen before he quit and applied himself fully to medicine. He wrote many books about medical history as well as books for children. 

The evening was perfection. I met and spoke to Klaus Rückert who enjoyed this great evening with his wife. When I saw everyone leaving I thought I have a glass of wine somewhere before going back home. I have to take advantage if my mother takes my son to bed, right? So where does everybody go after visiting the Theater or a reading in Coburg? The Künstler Klause. I had a flame cake and a glass of wine all by myself at a table observing some other guests while letting this beautiful evening sink in fully. I did not even take the book I bought right after the reading out to browse through it or even start reading it. [I just wondered for a second or two if I will ever be able to go to a reading without buying a book… or two] 

 Well, by eating by yourself most certainly don’t mean eating in front of the computer alone, on the couch or in front of the TV. I mean going to a restaurant all by yourself. It is a great feeling to know that I am in peace with myself and I am just pleasant to spend time with myself. I did not feel lonely at the restaurant, neither at the reading. I started this little project with going to cafés alone and it worked well. You should try it. 

I posted this video once already but it is one of my favorite poems by Rückert that was made into a classical song. Enjoy! 

Do you ever eat by yourself or spend an evening like I just did? Are you comfortable? I would love to hear your thoughts.