A parade of photos. Day One.

On a 7 hour plane ride to Frankfurt. Actually wasn't too bad until Sean let me know I could ask for seconds for food... -_-

Ok some pictures skipped down to the bottom, but this is a little shop in the Frankfurt Airport where I finally picked up a German dictionary for vocab, a postcard for my darling in Orlando, and some Haribo Juice Gummy Bears. Gummy Bears

Waiting in the DeutschBahn train information line to get a train ticket even though i know how to use the little digital ticket purchase kiosks... it was confusing since there were the long-distance trains and regional... 

This is me sitting inside a train at as you can see... Frankfurt am Main Hbf (Hauptbahnhof)

I was tired and forget where this was ha.

Like I said, i was tired...

Coming into Dresden? All I know is this is beautiful...

Houses passing by. The homes and villages are beautiful.

My train into Dresden Hbf was 30 minutes late so I missed my train from Dresden to Löbau(Sachs) :/ Had to run around figuring it out until I just went to a kiosk and bought a new ticket... Arrived in Löbau at 21:11...

Sean and I at Döner. Eating Döner for the first time! Place is awesome...

Wine I had on the plane from Montreal to Frankfurt. FREE.

My meal on the plane.


More pictures and explanation to come, but I'm hungry!

My plane has arrived... to the future.

Well it's that time...

I'm sitting at the Airport in Cleveland, Ohio and things are kinda starting to "get real" for me...
I honestly have no idea what is going on. I think my brain has no understanding of this new experience since it is just that: a new experience... I have Euros in my pocket and I'm very tired. Benadryl in the pack,  iPod is charged. I love people watching and I swear I just saw Hans from Die Hard get off the plane I was just on... Cool!

This trip up to Ohio has been lovely, time in Atlanta, Nashville and now Cleveland.
To top off my great American departure, I went to a baseball game with my dad and he got me a beer and a hotdog. So awesome.

This is the beginning.

The beginning of a new season, of a new understanding. I'm very privileged to be where I am. :)

I'm flying to Montreal right now on flight CO2785 and then I'll have a 5 hr layover there. I leave Montreal today at about 5:30pm and I arrive in Frankfurt at 6:30am the next day. Once I land and go through immigration and customs and whatever else I will make my way to the Bahn, the German train system and figure out how to get to Löbau which is the closest city to Herrnhut just east of Dresden.
That will be about a... 10 hour train ride byaw! So about almost a day of traveling in and I will arrive!

I'm so overwhelmed right now, and for the past couple weeks with emotion that it's hard to piece it all together haha. So eventually in Germany after I rest, I will go a little more in depth with my posts.

I'll will post again once I live in Germany, in the future. peace

bk

Sitting in Buford, en route to Ohio

Greetings! Long time I know... but so much has been happening, traveling, driving, eating. Yes eating.
Right now I'm in Buford, Georgia just a stone's throw away from the Mall of Georgia where some Disney star, Selene Gomez is making an appearance... so, way too many teenagers and kids. So here I am, tucked away in a secluded hallway making a dent in my blog posting.

Since I arrived in Georgia on Tuesday afternoon, I've spent some lovely time with my Aunt and Uncle whom I lived with during my senior year of High School some 5-6 years ago (whoa...) The first night we had dinner at my Aunt and Uncle's house. My other Aunt, Aunt Mary Jean came over as well as family friends Denise and Stephanie Valenti. The second day, Wednesday, I visited my Uncle's work, Tri-tech roofing, and had lunch with most of my dad's side of the family, my aunt's, uncle's and cousin. Golden Corral. I found it funny that the way they set the buffet bar up at Golden Corral is separated by holiday and ethnicity. Thanksgiving, southern, cajun, american... etc.

Went up to REI with my Aunt and Uncle and got some gear for my trip... a new knife, XL travel towel, stuff sack, granola bars, new carabiner... I love love love walking around REI just starring at everything... wishing and wanting... being content with what I do have though ha.

All in all, I've had a great time in Georgia visiting. Tonight I rock climb with Misha Golin at Stone Summit and then he and Caroline (friends that used to live in Orlando) and some other Orlando friends are going to Piedmont Park to watch 16 Candles in the park. stoked. Tomorrow morning I'll make my way to Nashville, even though I feel so good being here in Buford... It's only a 5ish hour drive, so should make it there pretty early, roam, hangout with my good friend Chris Adams, HOPEFULLY we can rock climb there too.


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Right before I left, my friend Doug Jackson came over the house and did some "gear shots" for me. Pictures of the stuff I'm taking basically. I finished one today...

If you click on it, it'll give you a little bigger picture that should be readable...

Support is coming along. Gonna be writing a lot soon. Thank-you's, Hello's, How are ya doings...

Miss everyone, but excited to be on this adventure. :)

Video blogs being edited. Should be uploaded soon...

for now...

Love Brian.

Two weeks and counting...

Ok, 13 days until I begin my journey...
First I drive to Ohio then Fly to Germany.

Ill be honest and say... It's incredibly overwhelming. Hoping for a lot of strength and endurance, knowing I will go through much.

I'm hoping to write a longer post but not right now. I'm sleepy.

SO here is a video my friend Mike took of me, throwing a Palette or whatever you'd call this...

Almost there! I leave soon! WHOA!

So I leave for Germany (first driving up to Ohio) in about 3 weeks. 3 WEEKS.
I'm a LITTLE nervous... because I don't have a plane ticket, and because I need to probably get somethings done first, it's so overwhelming, I have no idea.

ANYWAYS.

I HAVE ABOUT $700-750 dollars for a plane ticket right now. Honestly, I could buy one for almost $670 to Paris right now... but I'm not sure about living here the next 3 weeks, not to mention, getting to the east side of Germany through Euro Rail... who knows how much that will end up.

Anything now can help, my goal before I leave is to top at $1000-1200 dollars ( this will secure me a plane ticket and funds to get to the school.) then i need to raise just for the school itself...

oy.

well thank you!

EMAIL ME any questions at
Brkonnia@gmail.com

Brian!

Trying to write while I'm dreaming of waking up.

[¡¡¡Germany update at the bottom of this post!!!]


The magic of being taken into situations we never dreamed up ourselves. To be caught in another’s creation, or simply: another’s (daily) life. The power of friendship, of hearts not content, of hearts just pouring out with what naturally flows, our deepest love, tender and one-hundred percent vulnerable. The people I know and the lives that I see daily; they thrill me beyond anything I can create myself. My perception colliding memories that come with a package of light, colour and tangible taste/feeling. There are moments that make no sense prior to them actually happening. But in the midst of their machine-like-workings, we realize that sometimes, the collected pieces of dreams and memories sewn together in half attentive and joyous dance, we find the end result, our very own machine has been dreaming all along, dreaming for the day that it itself would be set free from our minds. And not to simple be terminal, to not just look in the mirror and call forth forced words of beauty… That our machine might be set free in order to teach us: that all which is truly remarkable, and truly meaning full, required only that we might share our hearts with one another, to never hinder, to never hold any one’s ideas higher or lower, to never feel exclusive, since we all were once machines. We all once held our hands over our eyes. So encourage each other and gently lower the lit walls and tender hands that cover out faces from seeing the truth that stares at us in patience. There cannot be something so perfect, that only belongs to a few. And it is that machine that reminds us, as it clothes’ itself in fleshly attire, so much, that we can’t separate the real from the imaginative… separating the machine, our dream, from the dreamer who finally sits confused, wondering is there any difference now? But what the machine is whispering to the dreamer is this: That you can be like me, stronger and endless and you can remain still human, still flesh for the time being… But know that your dream, that I the machine am here to let you know what you have beyond most things created, relationships with other hearts, connection to the countless that want to express what can sometimes be inexpressible. Because I’ve seen too many prideful selfish inspired machines.. I strive for the challenge of this, beyond, more bold. To understand how to love those fellow dream seekers. To share in kindness and humility (not self-loathing) when our machines begin to come out wrong. As a machine i feel led to say… that we aren’t growing anywhere, until you people can set aside the trivial arguments that separate. Im interested in those of you who will scream through your soul, in the most challenging task of mercy and love, sharing with each other FOR each other. Practice alone, and meditate, master yourself. Come undone before God and let everything expose it’s face. Eventually add to your dreams, far before I the machine come to be… add that true love that comes from Jesus. Cause I’m telling you now, you’re going to want the opposite in the moment it comes to you. So know now, I a machine telling you, there will be greater, there is bound to become more. Let go of your clasp on my direction and just let your gentle patience simmer, a little longer. No longer than that. Rest on that for a while longer. AND ONE DAY WHEN YOU NATURALLY WALK INTO THE ANSWER, ALMOST FORGETTING WHAT THE QUESTION WAS, THERE, A GREAT AMOUNT WILL BE ADDED TO YOU. and together you all will be seamless, loving. You will share stories and be content with just each other’s company. The dreaming machines will come. But first we pray for you, to let go, to love.


¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡
updates yo.
Getting closer to a plane ticket! Gathering up emails and addresses. (ps if you read this but haven't sent me that, could you at brkonnia@gmail.com?) About to send a Hogwarts amount of letters throughout the Nation. 
right now I'm at $260 and need about $440 or so for a plane ticket (one-way (total of about $750)). Please help! even 3 bucks is great, just your care and existence is enough.

His Eyes

The past few weeks have been cluttered with misinterpreted emotions, numb haziness and brittle anxiety, all leaving me overwhelmed: a clouded perception with offset eyes.

Last night pulled my feet out from under me and my false feelings. In the midst of all those negative things pulling at my every attempt at equilibrium, I made my way to quite possibly, the last Cool Hand Luke show I’ll ever see. For it was their last album, last tour. I was telling Mark later that night after the show that I was hardly even in the mood to drive the 40 miles out to the show. I would have rather went home, fighting lukewarm apathy/motivation, feeling little to nothing pressing further against my worn out mind.

But I relented and journeyed out, enjoying the drive.

To cut to point. It took giving up control of handling the outcome of my emotions and mood to become open to the moving of that which was around me, the Holy Spirit. As I sat, listening to the music, listening to the familiar honesty of Mark (CHL’s singer), I was removed from myself and anything that had hindered my spirit. It seemed almost immediate that my heart was swollen and my eyes were glassy. CHL’s newest album is based on the last days leading up to Jesus’ death and resurrection, giving perspectives of those who encountered him, sharing what might have been their thoughts and emotions towards the unfathomable and most unsettling events that took place. (i.e., through the eyes of Simon Peter, John, Judas Iscariot, Jesus’ mother Mary…)

I realized, that I had everything I needed before I even walked into that room and that the only thing that changed was my perception. So many trivial things were consuming me with worry, saturating my mind with anxious contemplation. And for no reason. In comparison to that which is truly important, all the rest seemed to fall away and take it’s rightful place; underneath my joy, underneath God’s grace and peace.
Once again, it was honesty and surrender that allowed me to see the truth that never leaves, always waits and constantly pursues…

Soli Deo Gloria