Ewelina is the founder and teacher of Seishin Reiki School Berlin, offers Reiki treatments and weekend trainings for beginners and advanced practitioners in Berlin and Brandenburg. Meanwhile, she and her family have moved out of the heart of Prenzlauer Berg in Berlin to the countryside in Brandenburg. Living right in nature, outside of a beautiful forest which harbors a secluded lake. Albeit a truly magical place, and in current times, probably a location many family with kids have yearned for.
Covid 19 has stopped us all in our tracks. How have you and your family adjust to this new situation of social distancing and isolation?
We had an introduction to social distancing one year ago when we decided to move outside of Berlin to get away from the noise and stress of the city life. This transition was a lot more challenging than previously anticipated as living in a secluded way comes with many compromises. The lockdown, for us, took away the possibility of accessing the city, should
we need it or want it. We continue to stay at home for the whole period, getting essential foods as locally as possible. It feels like a blessing to be in nature during the transition from spring to summer. Having the opportunity of being outside, either in our garden, forest or by the lake is deeply inspiring and soothing to all three of us. Personally, I feel very lonely without the physical presence of other women, fellow mums, or access to my family that is based abroad. I am grateful though that so many wellness practitioners jumped online with their offerings and I could participate regardless of the separation. It is a joy to cultivate my own vegetable garden, something I have been postponing since we moved in here.
It is always difficult to find a spare moment in the first years of parenthood while working full time. My partner saw social distancing as an opportunity to catch up on a long list of personal projects such as bread making and wood carving.
Our baby girl Olive is 20 months old and really craves contact with other children. It is heartbreaking to see when she reaches out to any child walking by. Luckily we have two cats and a visiting dog of our neighbors to keep her entertained.
You run your own Reiki school and practice in Berlin and Brandenburg. How do you manage to juggle work and taking care of an almost two year old toddler?
Olive is not attending kita, so it wasn’t a significant change for us. My partner works remotely so the lockdown did not cause much disruption to his professional schedule, only a slowdown. However, for me, it was a big revolt. As a Reiki master teacher – previous to the lockdown – I used to hold individual treatments and Reiki courses with groups which had to
be suddenly cancelled without a perspective on when they would resume. After the initial shock, I chose to see this unexpected turn of events as a gift and trying to make the most of it. I enjoy this simplified life without pressure from the outside world.
What is your biggest concern at the moment?
My concern is that it might take a very long time until we will be able to reconnect with each other in the way we used to. My hope is that long-distance travel will be possible without any additional difficulties as I miss this aspect of life a lot.
These times can also be very healing and cathargic for some. What change are you hoping for?
My deep wish is that we continue to “see each other” rather than “look at each other” and “hear each other” rather than “listen to each other”. I think we all had an opportunity to re-evaluate what is really important in our lives and we
won’t forget it.
What do you believe will be the mid- term consequences of the virus on the state of our world?
I see two outcomes. It could be that in a few months after the end of the crisis, no one will remember it and instead attention will be shifted to the next big event. Otherwise, I see this as a major change in how the population of earth perceives itself. It is an opportunity to acknowledge that anyone can be affected by something so small yet so powerful. I choose to think this crisis will teach us how fragile we are. Individually and as a collective. We all saw great examples of solidarity in the world. People generally complying with safety rules around the world is a positive sign that there is still a lot of compassion and care especially for those in the group of highest risk.
Thank you so much Ewelina for sharing this with us.
Find out more about her work under these links
www.reikischoolberlin.com
https://www.instagram.com/ewelina_bubanja/
https://www.facebook.com/seishinreikischoolberlin/
