A Tale of Two Gardens: From Dutch Roots to Global Retreats In 1652, the Dutch East India Company (VOC) had a simple plan: plant a vegetable garden at the Cape of Good Hope. It was just a humble patch to grow provisions for passing ships—how charmingly modest.Who could have guessed this little garden would grow…
Boundaries, Bonds, and Becoming: Beyond Motherhood
When Anthropology Meets Reality: A Mother’s Journey As an anthropologist at heart and a Cold War party girl, I’ve studied the intricate dynamics of family relationships across cultures. Yet my own experience has taught me something rarely discussed in academic circles: how to maintain dignity and boundaries when adult children treat your home as a…
“Cords and Accords”
Predators and Playgrounds: A Decade of Survival in the Business Wilderness Every entrepreneur has a story. Mine is a raw anatomy of survival, a dissection of power, addiction (not mine), and the unspoken rules that govern our supposed professional landscapes (and this is just one of many stories). A decade ago, I encountered a predator…
Duchess of Defiance
The Ebb and Flow of Oerkracht: A Journey of Generosity and Self-Discovery Oh, delightful – another tale of self-discovery dressed in Dutch vernacular (after all I am Dutch). My ‘oerkracht,’ they say – because apparently ‘life force’ wasn’t quite exotic enough. This term, with its unique Dutch force, resonates deeply with my personal journey of…
Facts through Fantasy 1.0
“The Riddle of Time” In a small coastal town where history sleeps beneath cobblestones, a wooden tablet emerged from lake mud like a whisper from the past. They called it Dispilio, and its markings – older than Sumerian cuneiform, dated to 5260 BC – sent ripples through the academic world. I remember how her eyes…
Silence of the Toads
Swamp Drainage for the Soul: How I Decluttered My Mind with Mental Bentō Boxes and Mortal Storytelling Let’s wade into the swamp of my inbox, where newsletters multiply like amphibians after rain. These anachronistic toads (yes, that’s what I’m calling pundits now) sit on their digital lily pads, croaking the same recycled crises with all…
“Of Protestants, Private Planes, and Pearl-Clutching”
From Tom Sawyer to Leo Sayer: A Journey Through Memory, Family, and Identity I was about 8 or 9 when I first read The Adventures of Tom Sawyer. It was an English copy, and though I was just a child in a small Dutch village called Voorthuizen—nicknamed the “Hill of the Bible” for its staunch Protestant…
From Islands to Butterflies
No Need for an Island, Darling: Life Lessons from a Cold War Party Girl Last night, my youngest daughter and I had one of those conversations that start somewhere mundane and end up exposing the layers of generational anxiety we all share. It began, of all places, with real estate prices and her dreamy musings…
Beyond Linear Living: Life’s Layered Landscapes
I’ve learned that life isn’t a straightforward journey but a series of profound, interconnected experiences.Each period of my life has been a distinct lifetime, rich with its own emotional texture and transformative energy. The span with my eldest daughter was adventurous—full-on, taken to the chest, hazardous and fun, yet profoundly searching.It was a time of…
With Arms Wide Open
The Unsung Symphony of Grandparental Love: A Rock and Roll Paradox In the vast landscape of rock music, where love songs reign supreme, there’s a curious absence that speaks volumes. The profound, multifaceted love between grandparents and grandchildren – a love that exists in its own unique dimension – remains largely unexplored in the realm…
The C.O.M.C. Files 