Thursday Tunes: The Summer Edition

It has been a while since I've posted some of my recent music I am listening too. Today let's call it the summer edition and I'll give you a list of albums I recently downloaded on noisetrade. Basically the soundtrack for my summer. Along with that I am going to post some of my favorite songs.
So here we go:

Noistrade Summer Mixtape - 65 songs for any road trip, beach day, BBQ or summer party. This is a great mix of many genres ranging from pop to folk, to indie, to rock & roll.
One of my favorite songs is "Nothing but Trouble" by Drew Holcomb & the neighbors. I have posted this song before here if you can remember. But here it is again:



Ivan & Alyosha: All the times we had - this is real feel good music for me. Lovely guitar sounds, very Indie

Bronze Radio Return: A Bit of Bronze - I am fairely new to this band and just recently discovered them on noisetrade. I love their sound - makes me happy. One of my favorite songs from the album is "Shake Shake Shake".


Judah & The Lion: First Fruits + Sweet Tennessee - I sometimes find it really hard to find really good Christian music with a great sound. And I am so glad I found Judah & The Lion. I love their sound. I love their lyrics and I love that it's music you can play anytime and be happy. One of the songs I really like is "Love your Love" from their First Fruits album.



I think that is it for now. I hope you have fun listening to the music I posted. Also check out my updated "Soundtrack" section with all the music I love.

Who's on your summer Soundtrack?

xoxo

Ramona

Movie Monday

Ah... another Monday and another movie I have recently watched, loved and want to share with you. Today: Anna Karenina (I know it's a costume drama again, but I just love them). Unfortunately I have not read the book yet but I will.

I have wanted to watch this movie for months already and was really excited when I finally did - and I wasn't disappointed in any way. It is hard for me to find the right words to describe this drama especially because of the way it was done. I loved the style of the movie with the stage and it felt like I was in that time and place right there with them, captivated by all that happened. If you have not watched it yet and are in for an epic drama you have to watch it.

xoxo

Ramona

Movie Monday

I have been watching a lot of movies lately (more than usual) due to the extra time I have and a rainy Spring + time = catching up on movies!
So I have decided to share some of the ones I loved for the next few weeks and we'll see how this will continue.
First up: Jane Eyre.

It took me a while until I finally watched the 2011 version of Charlotte Bronte's book. I read the book a few years ago and loved it. I remember sitting in the train being in the book completely forgetting about everything else around me. So... the movie had to somehow live up to these expectations. And although it wasn't quite as good as the book (what movie could?) I really really liked the movie a lot. I thought it was a beautiful, yet sad atmosphere to it which was exactly the right tone for the story.
If you like costume theaters like I do... go watch it!

xoxo

Ramona

picture via

The Art of doing nothing

I spent the last two weeks house and dog sitting with my best friend/flatmate. These last almost two weeks were so important and crucial. I was not working. I had time. Each day I would walk the dog. No phone, no music. Just nature, the dog and me. It was in those times I had time to think and pray and let my thoughts wander, start asking myself questions and allowing God to speak to my heart.
Everyday I sat at that beautiful wooden table, read my bible, spent time journaling and praying. I have this prayer book which was a present at the Colour Conference a year ago. You basically pray for every nation on this planet earth. It is an amazing book and reading through it, seeing the pictures, reading the stories of lives changed and having the opportunity to step in in prayer and make a change in people's lives is life changing. I would keep on thinking about the countries I prayed for and keep on praying for them throughout the day.
We live in a culture where we are always so occupied with everything. We constantly need to do something, be something, be active, go out, be on the phone etc. We forgot how to not do anything. I deliberately chose over the last two weeks to not do that. I chose for it to be ok to do nothing. To sometimes just sit and think without any noises or sounds surrounding me. Be still.
It is in these times that I started asking myself some pretty hard questions:

What kind of a person do I want to be?
Where do I want to be in the future and who?
Where do I see myself in a few years?
What are the important things and people in my life?

I can't say I have found all the answers just yet but I am on my way, defining and redefining.

I believe sometimes we just have to make that time to do nothing and be still. You will be surprised by all that can happen and what God might want to stirr in your heart.

xoxo

Ramona

PS: I also watched quite a few movies some of which I will share here soon.

** pictures via my instagram

The beauty of silence

There were so many things I wanted to say about this. So many feelings and thoughts I had. I wanted to talk about slowing life down, about watching movies which are set in the 1800s and how life was slower and quieter and yet words would be the opposite of the beauty of silence. Therefore all I am saying is this picture and all that comes with it.

xoxo

Ramona

Leave

In view of yesterday's premier of Season 10 of So you think you can dance I wanted to post this little video. It is a beautiful dance excelled in every bit of every movement. There is so much in it I can't even find the words so... enjoy it and be sure to see more dancing coming soon.

xoxo

Ramona

Who am I?

As one season comes to an end and I find myself in an in between season this question lingers again. Like a cloud is is hanging over me. It is a question I need to answer but not only in view of the present but most certainly need I think about the future.
Dreams. Visions. Goals... So to say.

Last week I went to London to the Hillsong Colour conference. One evening Brian Houston was preaching and he challenged all of us to sit down and write "The life I see".
At first I felt like I couldn't write it as if it was an impossibility. But on my flight to Austria (where I spent my last weekend) I pulled out my Moleskine and just started. As the pictures in my head started to become ink on paper a lot of things started to make sense as if they had just waited to be thought of yet even said.

And now there it is: New Dreams, new Visions and a life to pursue. And yet again I am left with a challenge. Go after your Dreams. Pray, be faithful, follow Jesus even more and learn. Become a better person and grow.

I gladly accept this challenge and cannot wait for the seasons ahead.

xoxo

Ramona