Contact Erica

Send me a message and I will be in touch soon!

Contact Form

Send me a message and we’ll be in touch!

Find Me On Social Media

ericapalmisano

Albrechtsburg Palace was last weekend's surprise w

Albrechtsburg Palace was last weekend's surprise win. It's considered the first true "palace" in Germany since it served no military purpose and thus is not a "castle." It was constructed in the late 1400s/early 1500s. The incredible ceilings throughout it were a trademark of the builders - complicated gothic vaults that reflect the light beautifully.
Once the bulk of the palace was built, the nobleman who owned it put together a team to reverse engineering porcelain using European materials/manpower. At the time, the silver mines in the area were exhausted, so they weren't going to make him enough money for his lifestyle. Chinese porcelain, however, was "white gold," imported from the East at great cost and desired all over Europe. After some false starts, the artizens succeeded in duplicating the product and a local industry was born.
Over the next 250 years, more and more of the palace was retrofitted as a factory and it functioned less and less as a showy residence. In the 19th century, the factory outgrew the space. The local government took over the property, restoring it for historical purposes (and added fanciful, sometimes anachronistic, murals because Romanticism 🤷🏻‍♀️). Much of the beauty is preserved, though, especially in the incredible staircases that looked way better than my cell phone photography conveys here.
My one regret is that we arrived in the last couple of hours it was open. I wish we'd had more time than explore it. There was lots to see the many rooms, to hear in the exhibits and audio guide, and to read in the museum cases and signage. We also enjoyed light indoor speedskating made possible by the smooth floors and the clogs provided to preserve them by fitting over our shoes. 😆

When we got done at 6 that evening, we were hungry, so we finished off at a Biergarten in a nearby hotel with amazing city views. It was a remarkable way to get to know lovely Meißen. 🥰

On the way home from Görlitz, we stopped off at t

On the way home from Görlitz, we stopped off at the Bastei - a stone bridge and the ruins of the bastion it used to have atop it. Beautiful views of the Elbe and the forest abound. 😍

Last weekend's brief excursion to Görlitz was a r

Last weekend's brief excursion to Görlitz was a rainy but successful getaway. We saw the town, the Silesian History Museum, the 15th Meridian marker, and a mess of beautiful buildings. We saw some fun stuff on the way home, but I ran out space on this post.
Traveling now is weird. Fewer people around 🙂, more trickiness finding food or services open 😑, other times no issues at all 😎. But Germany is slowly opening up. They're keeping an eye on the slight uptick in the infection rate, but ICU capacity is still very good and the testing and contact tracing is continuing apace. Let's hope it keeps going well. We have a long list of places we want to see before we move to the US again. 🌄

Let's make this a regular thing, no? Let's make it

Let's make this a regular thing, no? Let's make it even bigger. 😊

A thought for my white friends (and my white self)

A thought for my white friends (and my white self) about comforting.
-------------
When my dad died 6 years ago, I observed a strange thing at the funeral. I spent a lot of time comforting a few of his church acquaintances. I don't mean that they shared a sweet memory and some tears. They processed their suffering at length while I politely listened, my dad in the casket. Before this, I had naively expected the people missing a smile would comfort the person missing a lifetime of memories.
-------------
Later I learned about Susan Silk's Ring Theory. She has a simple diagram and a short phrase to make it easier to understand: COMFORT IN, DUMP OUT. (Haha, but stick with me!) -------------
Make a mental diagram like the picture above. The person suffering a loss/trauma is at the center. The people directly supporting the central figure are in a ring just outside. People supporting those people are next. Basically, the more connected you are to the loss/trauma, the closer your ring is to the center. For example, my mom lost her life partner, so she was in the middle. My siblings/in-laws and I were in the next ring. Dad's close friends were in the next. The annoying people were outside them. Because they weren't comforting each other and were instead dumping into the circle, their behavior was hurtful.
-------------
Where am I going with this? I'm not in the central circle of grief over white supremacy. Black Indigenous People of Color (BIPOC) are at the center. They are less shocked/dismayed right now since they have had direct experience before, but THEY HAVE HAD DIRECT EXPERIENCE. That's our clue! White people need to find others in our own circle to dump on. And we should offer BIPOC friends comfort. Also, importantly, "comfort" is defined by the person receiving it. If we're not listening to and respecting their stated needs, then we're not offering comfort at all. -------------
I can listen to anyone who needs it, but if I need a listening ear, I'm going to talk to my white friends. I want to grieve these injustices responsibly. Otherwise, I'm perpetuating rather than disrupting white supremacy.

In the autumn of 2009, I started a new job in a ho

In the autumn of 2009, I started a new job in a homeless healthcare facility called Christ House. There, between working in their Development Department and interacting with medical staff, patients, long-term residents in Kairos House, and the neighborhood of Adams Morgan DC, I saw individuals and communities scarred by discrimination, mass incarceration, poverty, and the housing crisis, as well as war and family trauma. I walked in a relatively naive person, but that place graciously taught me to see and think differently. I got to put my nose to the grindstone and be a part of it - stuffing envelopes, sharing lunches in the dining room, and listening to residents tell their stories. I changed jobs a few years later a changed person. I doubt anyone who draws close to the men and women of that place remains the same.
I've been reading a lot of words from corporations, nonprofits, and even some government agencies lately opposing racism. They often sound hollow or downright hypocritical. Fortunately, I have seen how Christ House lives it out and has for almost 35 years now. I am so grateful they do, and I'm proud to continue supporting their work of healing and hope for as long as it is needed.
Repost from @christhousedc

@berniceaking reminds us (via Twitter) that the wo

@berniceaking reminds us (via Twitter) that the work of Black liberation can be done in a variety of fields and a variety of ways.
#amplifymelanatedvoices #amplifyblackvoices

Repost from Twitter, but she's on Instagram and sh

Repost from Twitter, but she's on Instagram and she's bringing us a good word. @kaitlincurtice is an Indigenous advocate and she's focused on decolonizing our culture. She's got a book called Native you can read too. My favorite part: "Welcome to your humanity. Welcome to sacred, necessary work. Welcome home to yourself."

Load More... Follow on Instagram