Far out the best and my very favourite example of a drastically career changing doctor is my good friend Katrin. As they say every bad thing happens for a reason: we were colleagues and we closed the hospital chapter together. I am lucky to have kept her as a souvenir. She is the most passionate and inspiring person I know. Shortly after her last 30 something hour shift, she left the country to follow her dream.
I don’t think it was completely clear at that time how quickly this would develop into a new career, neither what the exact dream might be. But there was this instrument she fell in love with: the hang drum. It is a round metal bowl that looks like a big inverted “poffertjes pan”. Something that on first sight appears to either be an ancient import from the middle ages or from Mars. Which it is actually not at all. It is a quiet recent invention by some Swiss guys. All hang drums are handmade and thus are scarce. They are in fact really hard to get and awaited by a long cue. But it is so beautiful. Listen to it one time and your soul will shine, your mind will travel. You will be swept away. Especially when Katrin plays it.
It is not surprising that a hang drum festival was her best place to be despite the accumulated tiredness of the past month. Leaving the hospital and Berlin behind, she headed to the beautiful summer islands of Azores as the first and immediate destination. When she came back she was a different person. With her long blond hair and beautiful smile she radiated happiness and positivity wherever she entered the room. And she managed to get her own instrument. She was shining. The past marks of frustration and sleep deprivation had just faded away completely.
Just as me she had to think about future finances of course as this is how the world turns. But she sticked to her passion and took a very daring next step. Even though I think it came quiet natural does not mean there was no monster to conquer. But she did it. She took her love on the street. She sat in the cold and freezing on a bridge in the most conservative part of Germany, down south. And she played. She played in front of everybody. And people loved it. Of course. But who could have known for sure before she tried?
Of course she loved it too, but the cold German winter is not the best season for playing an instrument that dislikes thick, hand warming gloves. So she left for traveling again and again. Free like a bird, she played in Venice, in Rome, the French alps and even in beautiful acoustic caves in Morocco. She saw places, met people. She lived and loved. And everything just started to tumble. It has been less than six months and she is recording an album, has a scheduled concert and learns to make complex productions. And besides, she can still pay her rent, pension and health insurance easily too.
Her life is going well in all aspects. She dared to fall and started to fly. She still plays in the streets, even in the posh areas of Berlin. People stop every time, magnetised by the dreamy sounds and her overall sparkling self. Some well styled ladies in furry coats and heavy on gold one time enthusiastically asked her when she started playing and what she did before. She told them she had been a doctor, shivers running down her back in memory. Their stare turned pitiful. In a reassuring manner they advised her she could always go back, poor young girl. I don’t think she will too soon. She is the very best the way she is now.
If you are curious about her music and passion, check out her website. You can book her for events and concerts too.
DocSpiration 