It sounds so simple and it is so difficult. “Be yourself!”
At the beginning of January, I went to a class reunion in Stuttgart. I had repeated seventh grade at school and it was the reunion of my old class, which I was in from first to seventh grade.
I started with pantomime in the fifth grade at school. My teacher was Peter Makal, a student of the famous mime Marcel Marceau. At the end of the school year, I was asked if I would like to join him on stage at his pantomime theater in Stuttgart. I was thrilled. The Makal-City-Theater was colorful, crazy and fascinating. I learned how to juggle, ride a unicycle and do acrobatics. I practiced every day and had a lot of fun.
I’ll never forget how I bought my juggling equipment. There was a store in Stuttgart that was in a room in an apartment. It was only open on Wednesdays from 9 am to 1 pm. For me, that meant I could only go there during the vacations.

But there was a problem at school. Pantomime and artistry is not something that ‘normal’ students do. So I was teased and swam against the current all the time. But my passion for theater was so great that I didn’t want to give it up under any circumstances. So my circle of friends changed, and so my life changed. In the eleventh grade, Peter Makal decided to stop teaching at the school and asked me if I would like to take over. I felt honored and didn’t hesitate for a second. In total, I taught pantomime and clowning at the school for over ten years. Yes, and I financed my studies as a clown and I am proud of it. The stage is part of my life and always will be.
Most of the students secretly admired what I did, but couldn’t admit it and preferred to make fun of me.
At the class reunion, I was approached by several former students. They liked what I did and how I did it.
Another student told me that she stopped playing the piano and dancing, even though she loved it, because it wasn’t accepted in her environment. She still regrets it very much today.
I don’t regret at all that I went through with it and I’m proud of it.

➡️ Be yourself!
Who are you?
Think about it: what do you really want to achieve in your life?
Do you want that or do you just want it because other people expect it of you?

➡️ Be true to yourself and go for it!
When I look at the children today who are influenced by Instagram and TikTok, I’m sad to say that many of them just want to be like other children. Salvatore Dali certainly didn’t become so successful because he did everything the same way as everyone else.

➡️ Be brave, be different and change the world!

(And … yes, I’m the little boy at the photo 😃)