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| Unendlich live CD, Midnight Mallorca Mix CD, a life changing book by Hape Kerkeling, Mozart Kugeln and assorted lebkuchen, and two magazines of German style cooking and baking |
I have a wonderful pen pal. I've said it before. And I shall say it again. She is a thoughtful person and eager to share the things that she loves with other like minded people. One of those things that we love is the music of Matthias Reim. That fan frenzy is how we met. Online during the week of his release concert this year. We have a lot of other things in common, but Matthias is the main thing. There is not a feeling I can feel in which his music does not provide comfort or encouragement. It is all there. And really that is the best kind of music. When music, or any art, comes from a life lived fully and with the joys and sorrows that happen you have the best kind of music ever. And that is perhaps why modern American music annoys me: it really is about nothing. And not in a good Seinfeld way.
Between Sting and Matthias Reim, I should be all set with the emotional support to get through the rest of my life. Maybe. I'm one of those introverts that has a hard time with people and goes into seclusion. Then when I get bored of having to be my own company I come out of the cave guns a blazing and ready to tackle the world only to find myself tripping over the gun belt that has slipped off the hip because I do not really know what I am doing. And when I fall on my face I need someone to help me that can offer the help without judgment. Enter music. And German music is particularly helpful to me since no one around me will no what ails my heart. I can not be made fun of. I can not have my heart turned against me. It is perfect.
At work the guys always say that my radio is broken. I think I will just have to tell them that they need to upgrade their universal translators. But I don't want them to know that my heart is still heavy from the events involving Sir Knight. Nor do I want them to know that their own brand of ugliness has gotten to me. Matthias can sing abut his heart being squished into a bloody pulp with a great dance beat behind it to disguise some of the anguish. And no one in that laundry room is the wiser for it. No one needs to know that I feel the way they want me to feel. No one need know that I am the Schwanenkönig and how keenly I feel the loss of their friendships.
And as always, Unverwundbar is my shield, Matthias my guardian angel and Über sieben Brücken is the courage to continue when I do not want to, there is light after the dark night, there is life after the ashes of despair. I know, two of those songs are not his. But his voice is the one that lends the conviction to them that allows me to take the message seriously. Lest you all thing it is all despair in my little corner of the world it is not. Matthias makes a great dance tune.
His is a soul that feels every feeling with passion. It is easy to ride the waves with him. It certainly feels safer than trying to navigate feelings without a guide. And now, thanks to my pen pal the collection is complete.
As I was getting ready to write this so that I could talk about German food and especially the baking, she wrote me to tell me a few things about the package. Which is funny because she prevents me then from asking her if she was sure she wanted to give me her copies. None of them were shrink wrapped so I assumed it was from her personal stash. She had two copies of the signed CD so one is mine now. The story of the Mallorca edition though has put me out of sorts. And I don't think that I will write about food now.
I've been trying to collect all the CDs. I have all but two of Sting's, all of the Monkees albums were re-released for their 40th anniversary. It is only fitting that I should strive for all of the albums from Matthias. Considering finances, I always put this one at the bottom of the list. And as luck would have it, the used dealer on Amazon ran out and could not get more. Amazon was out for a long time, so long that it seemed that maybe it was out of print. 7Leben caused a huge run on his work. And Unendlich depleted the rest of the supplies fairly well. As a matter of fact, Unverwundbar for a long time could not be had for less than 100 Euro. Yikes! I love him but I still have to live.*
So I told my pen pal that I had everything but that CD. She said it was a minor CD and not really a must have. I told her that I had guessed as much. But the version of Hallelujah that I like the most is in the Midnight Show because it has the screaming violins and sounds like the kind of church music that makes dead popes roll in their graves. [This is obviously not what Matthias intended. It is how my particular brand of schadenfreude manifests itself. And a commentary on my opinion that better church music would keep more butts in the seats instead of driving people away. My opinion. And it could be wrong.] Obviously this is something that she remembered from many months ago.
She had the opportunity to help the family help Matthias' father downsize. As they were going through his personal belongings they came across 5 copies of this particular CD. He asked if she knew anyone who could use them.
And she did.
Complete.
*quick fact checking at amazon tells me that their supply of Matthias Reim anything is slim. They are down to hard copies of singles and only a few compilation albums... which I already have. No Mallorca.
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