Tag Archives: Schiphol

Holy Icons

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Last year in June I had to drive to Schiphol Airport to collect my aunt who came back from a trip to Odessa [Ukraine]. She is part of a group of artists who paint Russian icons and the trip was organised by her teacher, a nun. It was her first time trip on her own and I promised I would pick her up and bring her back home all the way up north. Every week the group meets up to continue painting their icon. The technique that is used is quite an intensive one, and could take weeks of preparation on specially prepared wooden panels.

© Matthias Kabel An Iconostasis

At some point my aunt told me she would love to paint one for me and asked me to think about what I would like to have painted. She had a Madonna with child in mind but somehow it didn’t really make sense… She asked me again in April when I was going through a rough time and while we were on the phone I had this image in my head all of a sudden, a holy person who was slaying a dragon, lots of gold and lots of reds… I had no idea who it was or why I had that image in my head. I told my aunt what I saw and she would try to find it in a book about Russian icons that I gave her in February. I told her I would look online, so I did and guess what I found out…

This is the image that came to me

I was talking about Saint Michaël… I found the above image of him online, the one that I had in mind, the one where he was pictured slaying the dragon… But the most interesting thing is yet to come: I found out what he represents, why he had ‘choosen’ me. Symbolism: Archangel Michaël is the fighter of light par excellence, who succeeds against the darkness of evil forces. In his icons, he holds a balance that weighs people’s deeds on Judgement Day, as well as a sword, with the help of which he defeats Satan and the forces of darkness. Often he is represented defeating a dragon.

Spiritual meaning: we can ask Archangel Michaël to help us control and overcome the negative tendencies that still exist in our being. Anytime we feel overwhelmed by events, or when life situations seem to develop relentlessly, he can help us have a more elevated, more spiritual and wiser view upon our life. His mission is to guide and protect us from injustice and to help us open our beings towards what is eternal and immortal. We can ask him to help us in any situation when we feel overwhelmed or alone and we need help.

So yesterday I received another package from the postman -yes I am spoiled this week!- a beautiful painting from the Archangel Michaël, an icon painted by my aunt on a wooden panel with all shades of red, yellow, blue and gold… She did an amazing job! The original is a Russian icon and the dragon is replaced by Satan. It’s a true work of art and I’m really happy with it. Below you can see what it looks like.

Archangel Michaël painted by my aunt

Maid Of Honor

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It’s Wednesday and I’m still feeling tired and drained, I think I haven’t had enough sleep last week; going to bed late and getting up early. I have a cold since Monday, I’m trying to fight it: I don’t need another sinus infection right now, that would be bad timing, but I feel dizzy, I’ve got cotton balls in my head, a runny nose and I seem to fall asleep all day long so hopefully it won’t get any worse…

I was fine until Sunday evening at the airport; we were waiting to get on the plane, waiting in line like cattle in a confinement barn. And of course there was the usual delay, this time about half an hour. There was a strong draft right on the back of my head and there was no way to escape it: I knew I would catch a cold. So here I am fighting the invisible intruders with lots of sleep and rest. I basically fall asleep whenever I sit on the couch and watch some TV. I can’t keep my eyes open, weird isn’t it?
Anyway, I promised some people an update so here it is, from what I can remember still… ;)

Saturday:
Early start, CH. had to go to the hairdresser to have her make-up and hair done. G., a friend of CH. came over and started to decorate the front door. I got up, made coffee and wrote a post on here. I had about two hours to get ready and dressed. CH. would be back at 11.30 and I had to be ready by then because I had help her change into her wedding dress. We had tried it on yesterday and I had a serious struggle with the zipper of her bustiere [basque] I was afraid to pull it since it could break, but it went smooth and quick on Saturday, no problems at all. When she was ready I checked the dress and to my surprise I saw something white in between the two layers of fabric, it was quite big [about 12 cm] and made of thick paper… it turned out to be the price tag! The people of the store where she bought her dress forgot to remove it, plain neglect isn’t it?

The carriage came to collect the couple at 13.00 and off they went, to the park to have their photos taken. We were expected at the church which was about 10 minutes drive from CH.’s place. From here it’s all a blur… The ceremony was performed by a government-sanctioned secular officiant, and took about 45 minutes to an hour. She addressed to the maids of honor and told us the reasons why CH. and TH. had chosen us to be their witnesses. CH. had chosen me, TH. had chosen J. It was a bit emotional to me especially when I was told that I was responsible for bringing them together as a couple [which I did]. Also the fact that I had designed their wedding invitation was mentioned. After the ceremony, J. and I had to sign the marriage licence; two of them and the register. Then it was time for champagne…

There was a reception after half an hour and the wedding cake was cut; a delicious cake! I’ve been talking with ex colleagues, friends, CH.’s family, my ex boss and his wife, friends of CH. and some other people. We had to leave a bit earlier because we were expected at this B&B up north. It took us about 45 minutes to get there by car. The lady of the house had to tell us the usual stuff that’s been told when you’re staying at a B&B but it had to be done so by the time she was finished showing me around it was after 18.00 already and we still had to change and get ready. We were supposed to be at the pub at 18.00 for dinner… It didn’t take long to get there though, CH. and TH. were late too, unfortunately their black cab broke down on the highway… We had dinner with 24 other guests, it was a great meal, I had all the food that I couldn’t have or didn’t have in the UK. *mmmmmmmmmm*

The party started after dinner till early in the morning and I had a great time dancing and making a total fool of myself [just like everyone else!]. It was a typical ‘Amsterdam’ party/reception with the type of music you can hear in the Dutch pubs; Dutch artists and Dutch songs. Hilarious! Although I didn’t know the lyrics so I couldn’t sing along like all the other people, I still had fun… We took a friend J. home to her B&B; she had no clue who she was, where she was or if she was being abducted by aliens, although she did kiss me goodnight at the front door, she must have recognised me all of a sudden… We walked home to our own B&B where I crashed completely as soon as I put my head on the pillow.

Sunday:
Got up at 08.30 and was ready for breakfast at 09.00. Ready… just not awake yet. Breakfast was lovely and I had some of my favourite Dutch things again like: beschuit and komijne- or Leidschekaas and ontbijtkoek [An Ontbijtkoek is a Dutch spiced cake. Rye is its most important ingredient, coloring the cake a lightish brown. It is often spiced with cloves, cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg, and is occasionally served on a slice of bread. Mostly however, this “breakfast cake” is used in the morning with a little butter on top of a slice]. After breakfast I had to reorganise my suitcase; I had to give some stuff to AS. because my case was probably too full and too heavy.

We left about half an hour later and drove back to Amsterdam to meet up with DM. where we spent most of the afternoon. We also went for a walk in the forest [Amsterdams Bos] before we drove to Schiphol Airport. We wanted to be there early because of the bombs that were found in London and the one in Glasgow [security checks at Schiphol]. We arrived in the UK at 22.30 and got the train at 22.55, we came home around midnight. I was totally knackered!!! But it has been a great week!!!

Some pictures: