partying hard at oktoberfest in munich! + some thoughts on sisterhood and motherhood

 

our cars got separated from each other as we drove into munich. we had decided beforehand that we would meet at the glockenspiel, the famous bell tower, in the marienplatz, the heart of the city.

the two groups of us approached the marienplatz from opposite sides, and all of us were surprised and pretty delighted to find the square packed with people dressed in lederhosen and dirndls. we had no idea that we were going to munich right at the end of the epic oktoberfest festival! the atmosphere was electric and so fun. we had missed the last chime (43 bells ringing and 32 life-sized figures moving!) of the glockenspeil but the excellent people watching made up for that!

we only had a couple of hours in munich, but it was really neat to get a taste of this fabulous city, especially during oktoberfest! we walked down charming streets to the hofbrauhaus, the most famous bavarian brewery/beer hall. it was a serious party there, and it was so fun to walk through the different floors and feel all the exuberance – sober as can be :)

after the dark of night descended, we found a cafe down a relatively quiet (the city was really buzzing!) side street and shared our highlights from the fabulous week we’d spent together in switzerland, germany and austria. as i write this i still can’t believe this trip was real – so full of beauty and fun and sisterly love. we all feel so so fortunate to have been able to do this together and to have the relationships that we have.



i know i’m pretty much a broken record on this – but i just can’t believe how blessed i am to have this group of women in my life. i am so grateful for my mom and her stellar example, for my sisters and their care and precedent, and for my sisters-in-law who bring wonderful perspective to our family and are dang cool human beings. we all certainly disagree with each other at times, and there can be tension when we have differing preferences on a trip, but all in all we sincerely adore each other and find so many things to learn from each other. i am so grateful that my mom had and carries out a vision for bolstering our sisterhood, helping us collaborate, and providing deliberate opportunities for us to support each other as women in powerful ways.

we call our group of sisters mfme – which stands for “mothers and future mothers of eyrealm.” we all have had valuable opportunities to contribute to the world, broaden ourselves, and find joy in different professional and interpersonal pursuits. and each of us feel deeply and personally that in many regards the most salient way to contribute, broaden and find joy is through motherhood. although this perspective is certainly informed by our upbringings and our shared faith, it is not imposed on any of us nor intended to be imposed by us on anyone else.

our mfme conversations and interactions only occasionally center specifically around motherhood. our time together is more likely about earnest desires to make a positive impact in the world around us, ideas on finding balance and enjoying the beauties of life, shared experiences that may help us strengthen all of our relationships, and understanding that allows us to support each other in challenges (there’s plenty of plain fun and silliness, too!). but we each know that all these things feed into and out of home and family, the centers of our lives.

i believe fiercely in the power of motherhood. and i am so grateful for my mfme sisterhood, a tremendous and beautiful force that helps me to develop as a human and therefore as a future mother.