Chef Karen Man: From Copenhagen To Houston To Motherhood

[[MUSIC]]

I’M KASSATA BOLLMAN. 

TODAY MY GUEST IS CHEF KAREN MAN.

SHE JOINS US FROM NORTH CAROLINA …..JUST NORTH OF ASHEVILLE….

WHERE CURRENTLY SHE’S A NEW MOTHER, A BAKER, A WRITER….AND AN ALL AROUND CREATIVE PERSON….

WE’LL BE DISCUSSING…. 

HER FORMATIVE YEARS AS A CHEF IN COPENHAGEN….

PLUS……WE’LL EXPLORE HER JOURNEY TO OPENING A RESTAURANT IN HOUSTON…

AND….HER RECENT TRANSITION FROM MAIDEN TO MOTHER….

SO I’LL START BY ASKING…..AS WE ALWAYS DO…..“HAVE YOU EATEN YET ?”......

THIS COULD BE A MEAL FROM TODAY  …...OR….. IT COULD BE A MEAL FROM ANYTIME IN YOUR LIFE…. THAT YOU HAVE A REALLY GREAT MEMORY ABOUT…..

[[CHEF KAREN MAN DISCUSSES]]

RELÆ 

WE’RE GOING TO START OFF BY GOING BACK IN TIME….AND THEN WORK OUR WAY TO PRESENT DAY……

YOU HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO STAGE AT  RELÆ. WHAT ATTRACTED YOU TO APPLY THERE?

[[CHEF KAREN MAN DISCUSSES]]

YOU WERE THERE IN THEIR OPENING MONTHS…SET THE SCENE FOR US…WHAT WAS A TYPICAL DAY LIKE FOR YOU ?

[[CHEF KAREN MAN DISCUSSES]]

I’M SURE YOU MET MANY AMAZING PEOPLE THERE….WHO STANDS OUT THE MOST FOR YOU ? AND WHY ?

[[CHEF KAREN MAN DISCUSSES]]

WHEN WE WERE EMAILING EACH OTHER YOU DESCRIBED YOUR TIME THERE AS QUOTE “A CULTURAL EXPERIENCE THAT FOREVER ALTERED MY TRAJECTORY ON THIS PLANET.” 

THAT’S A POWERFUL STATEMENT…HOW DID THAT EXPERIENCE ALTER YOU ?

[[CHEF KAREN MAN DISCUSSES]]

CHEF KIM ROSSEN

ONE OF THE FOUNDERS OF RELÆ CHEF KIM ROSSEN RECENTLY PASSED AWAY FROM A CANCER THAT CRIPPLED HIM IN JUST A FEW YEARS.

CHEF CHRISTIAN PUGLISI WROTE A BEAUTIFUL TRIBUTE TO HIM ON INSTAGRAM THAT READ IN PART, QUOTE: 

“I WAS ALWAYS THE ONE THAT STOLE THE SPOTLIGHT….. WHEN WE WERE WORKING TOGETHER, BUT WITHOUT KIM’S WORK, FLAIR, EXPERIENCE AND THE PARTNERSHIP WE SHARED…. I SIMPLY WOULDN’T HAVE BEEN WHERE I AM TODAY.  FOR THAT I AM GRATEFUL.”

KAREN, I’D LOVE TO HONOR CHEF ROSSEN….IF THERE’S ANY STORY THAT YOU’VE HEARD ABOUT HIM….OR MEMORY THAT YOU EXPERIENCED FIRST HAND WHILE WORKING THERE WITH HIM….I’D LOVE TO HONOR THIS SPECIAL SOUL….AND PLACE THE SPOTLIGHT ON HIS LIFE NOW…..

[[CHEF KAREN MAN DISCUSSES]]

THOUGHTS

IF I SAY……”YOUR THOUGHTS CREATE………. YOUR WORDS SHAPE”….WHAT’S THE FIRST THING THAT COMES TO YOUR MIND ?……IT COULD BE A TIME IN YOUR LIFE…. A FAVORITE QUOTE ....ANYTHING….

[[CHEF KAREN MAN DISCUSSES]]

OPENING

YOU OWNED A RESTAURANT CALLED OXHEART… IN HOUSTON…. I’D LIKE YOU TO TAKE ME BACK IN TIME TO THE DAY THAT YOU OPENED YOUR FIRST RESTAURANT.

PLEASE DESCRIBE WHAT OPENING DAY WAS LIKE …..AND WHAT THE TRANSITION INTO THE FIRST TWO YEARS WAS LIKE ?……..WHAT HURDLES….AND HIGHLIGHTS….STAND OUT TO YOU ?

[[CHEF KAREN MAN DISCUSSES]]

TRUE

AND STAYING IN THIS TIME OF OXHEART….HOW DID YOU STAY TRUE TO YOURSELF WHILE NAVIGATING THE UPS AND DOWNS OF BEING A CHEF?

[[CHEF KAREN MAN DISCUSSES]]

20

WHAT WOULD YOU TELL YOUR 20 YEAR OLD SELF ?….MAYBE IT’S ADVICE, A THOUGHT….OR A FEELING….….

[[CHEF KAREN MAN DISCUSSES]]

TRIP

IN THE PAST YEAR WHAT’S ONE TRIP THAT YOU’VE BEEN ON THAT HAS POSITIVELY IMPACTED YOUR LIFE…THIS COULD BE AN ACTUAL TRIP OVERSEAS…..OR HERE IN THIS COUNTRY….IT COULD BE A TRIP CLOSE TO HOME….. OR….MAYBE IT’S A GOOD MEMORY….LIKE A TRIP DOWN MEMORY LANE…….OR…..IT COULD BE A PSYCHEDELIC TRIP….

[[CHEF KAREN MAN DISCUSSES]]

MOTHER

YOU RECENTLY MADE THE TRANSITION FROM MAIDEN TO MOTHER. 

I KNOW SOMETIMES MOTHERS DON’T FEEL FULLY SEEN DURING THIS TRANSITION….SO I JUST WANT TO ACKNOWLEDGE YOU…AND YOUR JOURNEY….I SEE YOU AND I HONOR YOU.

YOUR BABY’S NAME IS SIRIUS. 

I WANT TO READ PART OF YOUR INSTAGRAM POST ABOUT HIS ARRIVAL…

YOU WROTE QUOTE:

“HE’S BEEN GUIDING US IN EGO DEATH….. FACILITATING SELF-INQUIRY, EXPANDING OUR CAPACITY TO LOVE AND HEAL…BRIDGING OUR UNDERSTANDING OF INTERCONNECTEDNESS AND INTERBEING……AND NOURISHING OFTEN ON SORE NIPPLES.

WE ARE BLESSED TO HAVE HAD A HEALTHY BIRTH AT HOME.”

I WOULD LOVE FOR YOU TO UNPACK THOSE THOUGHTS FOR US….IT WAS BEAUTIFULLY WRITTEN…CAN YOU PLEASE SPEAK TO THE PART ABOUT ‘BRIDGING OUR UNDERSTANDING OF INTERCONNECTEDNESS AND INTERBEING’....

[[CHEF KAREN MAN DISCUSSES]]

IF IT’S NOT TOO PERSONAL….. CAN YOU PLEASE SHARE YOUR HOME BIRTH STORY ?

[[CHEF KAREN MAN DISCUSSES]]

ON SUBSTACK YOU OFFERED YOUR WORDED REFLECTIONS OF THESE SACRED MOMENTS….I’M GOING TO READ A FEW EXCERPTS AND HAVE YOU EXPAND ON EACH THOUGHT….

HERE’S THE FIRST QUOTE:

“HOW DO WE ASK FOR MORE TIME TO HEAL, TO RAISE OUR NEWLY EXPANDED FAMILIES, TO REBUILD OURSELVES, TO TAKE CARE OF EACH OTHER, TO EMBODY OUR FULLEST INDIVIDUAL AND COLLECTIVE POTENTIAL ?

HOW DO WE SHARE WITH THOSE WHO WILL STEP INTO MOTHERHOOD AND FATHERHOOD? HOW DO WE SURRENDER OURSELVES INTO THOSE HARD AND MOST TENDER MOMENTS?

TAKE ME BACK TO WHEN YOU WROTE THIS….AND ALL THESE QUESTIONS RUNNING THROUGH YOUR MIND…..

[[CHEF KAREN MAN DISCUSSES]]

HERE’S ANOTHER QUOTE:

“I HAVE NEVER FELT FARTHER FROM MYSELF YET TRULY MYSELF. 

THE SACRED MOMENTS SOMETIMES FEEL SO INTERNAL THEY SEEM LIKE A SEPARATE EXISTENCE FROM THE PARTNER THAT IS HOLDING ME AND SIRIUS. 

THE HARDEST PARTS OF MOTHERHOOD HAVE ALSO BEEN SOME OF THE DEEPEST, MOST PROFOUND MEMORIES.”

WHEN I READ THESE WORDS THEY MAKE ME SMILE….HOW DID YOU FEEL WHEN WRITING THEM?

[[CHEF KAREN MAN DISCUSSES]]

HERE’S THE NEXT QUOTE:

“A DEEPER REGENERATIVE PRACTICE CALLS TO ME: OF HONORING CYCLES, OF BALANCING THE DIVINE FEMININE AND MASCULINE…. OF CULTIVATING THE GROUND I STAND ON…OF ASKING AND CREATING SPACE TO PRACTICE AND TO UNITE.

IT’S BEEN A FEW MONTHS SINCE YOU WROTE THIS….WHERE ARE YOU NOW IN THIS CYCLE & PRACTICE ?

[[CHEF KAREN MAN DISCUSSES]]

HERE’S THE FINAL QUOTE:

“UNCONDITIONAL LOVE BIRTHS OUT OF A FEMININE MYSTERY…. FROM A WELL SO DEEP…. IT CAN ONLY TRANSFORM ALL PARTICIPANTS. 

MAMAHOOD CAN FEEL LIKE A BREAKING DOWN AND REBUILDING AT TIMES. 

ITS FIELD IMPARTS BIG SHIFTS IN THE PHYSICAL, EMOTIONAL, ENERGETIC, AND SPIRITUAL BODY. 

IT CAN BE DISORIENTING AT OTHER TIMES…. BUT WE HAVE STARSEEDS TO GUIDE US. 

I WISH FOR US IN THIS NEW TIMELINE, MORE COMMUNITY, MORE SONG, MORE REST, MORE FULLNESS, AND MORE EMBODIMENT.”

PLEASE EXPAND YOUR THOUGHTS ON THE BREAKING DOWN AND REBUILDING THAT MOTHERHOOD HAS IGNITED… IN YOUR LIFE….

[[CHEF KAREN MAN DISCUSSES]]

YOUR MOM WENT BACK TO WORK WHEN YOU WERE THREE WEEKS OLD…..SHE ALSO STOPPED BREASTFEEDING YOU AT THAT POINT….

YOU ARE CHOOSING A DIFFERENT EXPERIENCE FOR SIRIUS….LET'S TALK ABOUT THE CHOICE….

NOT EVERYONE CAN MAKE THAT CHOICE….FINANCIALLY SPEAKING HERE IN AMERICA….

OUR FRIENDS IN DENMARK ADVOCATE FOR WOMEN AND HAVE A COMPLETELY DIFFERENT CULTURAL OUTLOOK…. AND GOVERNMENT SUPPORTED SYSTEM…..

WHAT THOUGHTS HAVE CROSSED YOUR MIND WHILE NAVIGATING THESE CHOICES….

 [[CHEF KAREN MAN DISCUSSES]]

THERE’S ANOTHER SIDE OF PREGNANCY THAT I’D LIKE TO TOUCH ON…..WHEN YOU DON’T MAKE IT TO THE FULL TERM….THERE ARE MANY DIFFERENT PREGNANCY JOURNEYS. I HAD A MISCARRIAGE LAST YEAR…..AT ABOUT 7 WEEKS. MANY PEOPLE GO THROUGH THIS ….AND YET, IT’S STILL NOT TALKED ABOUT OPENLY AS OFTEN AS IT SHOULD.

ALL OF THE BREAKING DOWN AND REBUILDING AND TRANSFORMATION THAT KAREN DESCRIBED SO WELL….ALSO APPLIES TO GROWING AND LOSING A SOUL….IT HAS FOREVER CHANGED ME.

AFTER THAT LOSS….I HAD MY FIRST SPIRITUAL AWAKENING…IT BROUGHT TO LIGHT CHILDHOOD MEMORIES THAT I HAD SUPPRESSED….BREAKTHROUGHS ABOUT MY ANCESTRAL LINEAGE….IT’S A VERY PROFOUND JOURNEY TO GO THROUGH …..IF YOU ALLOW YOURSELF TO GO ON THAT JOURNEY…..NOT EVERYONE DOES…..WHAT I’M REFERRING TO IS BEYOND GRIEF….IT’S ALSO A REBIRTH.

JUST LIKE KAREN REFERRED TO BIRTH….THIS TOO CREATES BIG SHIFTS IN YOUR PHYSICAL, SPIRITUAL, EMOTIONAL AND ENERGETIC BODY. THE OTHER POWERFUL PART TO THIS JOURNEY IS TRULY GETTING IN TOUCH WITH YOUR BODY.

THE INCREDIBLE POWER IN LISTENING TO YOUR BODY AND COMMUNICATING WITH YOUR BODY. I’M FULL OF GRATITUDE TO MY SPIRIT BABY FOR TEACHING ME SO MUCH. IT FEELS LIKE THE MOST ALL AROUND GROWTH I'VE DONE SO FAR IN LIFE. I’M NOW EMERGING WIDE AWAKE AND STEPPING INTO A DIFFERENT ENERGY…FEELING REALLY EMPOWERED FOR THE FIRST TIME IN MY LIFE. 

BOOK

IN THE LAST YEAR, WHAT BOOK STANDS OUT IN YOUR MIND….. THAT POSITIVELY IMPACTED YOUR LIFE THE MOST… ?

[[CHEF KAREN MAN DISCUSSES]]

NEXT

WHAT’S NEXT FOR YOU ?.... WHAT ARE YOU WORKING ON RIGHT NOW ? ….WHAT ARE YOU EXCITED FOR IN THE MONTHS TO COME ?

[[CHEF KAREN MAN DISCUSSES]]

FINDING INSPIRATION

HOW DO YOU CONTINUE TO FIND INSPIRATION EACH YEAR ? ......

[[CHEF KAREN MAN DISCUSSES]]

FUTURE

WHAT DOES YOUR IDEAL FUTURE LOOK LIKE ?......

[[CHEF KAREN MAN DISCUSSES]]

SYNCHRONICITIES

HAVE THERE EVER BEEN ANY SIGNS OR SYNCHRONICITIES IN YOUR LIFE…. THAT LED TO NEW OPPORTUNITIES FOR YOU….. IN THIS INDUSTRY? ……. 

IF SO, PLEASE DESCRIBE THE MOMENT….

[[CHEF KAREN MAN DISCUSSES]]

FLOW STATE:

A FLOW STATE, ALSO KNOWN AS BEING IN THE ZONE…. IS THE MENTAL STATE WHEN A PERSON IS PERFORMING AN ACTIVITY….. AND IS FULLY IMMERSED…. IN A FEELING OF ENERGIZED FOCUS, CLARITY  AND ENJOYMENT…. IN THE ENTIRE PROCESS…..

IT DOESN’T FEEL LIKE WORK….IT’S EFFORTLESS ATTENTION….. THAT YOU’RE GIVING THE ACTIVITY…..IT’S A EUPHORIC FEELING… 

IT’S DURING THIS ALTERED STATE OF CONSCIOUSNESS…. THAT YOUR MIND FUNCTIONS… AT ITS PEAK….AND A SENSE OF HAPPINESS… FLOWS THROUGH YOUR BODY.

FOR YOU IT COULD BE AS YOU’RE BAKING PERHAPS….…..

I’M WONDERING …..IF YOU’VE YOU EVER REACHED THIS STATE ?.....

IF YOU HAVE….PLEASE DESCRIBE YOUR SURROUNDINGS…. LEADING IT UP TO IT….

AND WHAT IT FELT LIKE…. BEING IN THAT STATE?

[[CHEF KAREN MAN DISCUSSES]]

REMEMBERED

HOW DO YOU WANT TO BE REMEMBERED?

[[CHEF KAREN MAN DISCUSSES]]

TAKEAWAY:

THANK YOU FOR SHARING YOUR WISDOM WITH US …

I BELIEVE THAT THE JOURNEY…. IS ALWAYS GREATER THAN THE DESTINATION. 

IT’S ON THE PATH THAT WE LEARN….EVOLVE AND….. ENCOUNTER LESSONS…. THAT SHAPE US…. INTO OUR BEST SELVES.

I ALWAYS LIKE ENDING THE PODCAST…. BY ASKING…. IF THERE’S ANY TAKEAWAY THAT YOU’D LIKE TO LEAVE WITH LISTENERS…... THAT CAN POSITIVELY INFLUENCE THEIR LIVES.

IT COULD BE SOMETHING THAT WE JUST DISCUSSED…. A LESSON YOU’VE LEARNED ON YOUR JOURNEY…. OR GENERAL LIFE ADVICE THAT YOU LIVE BY ….…

[[CHEF KAREN MAN DISCUSSES]]

AND WHERE OR HOW …..IS THE BEST WAY FOR PEOPLE TO CONNECT…. OR GET IN TOUCH WITH YOU  ?

[[CHEF KAREN MAN DISCUSSES]]

OUTRO:

THANKS FOR LISTENING….AND IF YOU HAVEN’T ALREADY….... FOLLOW  “HAVE YOU EATEN YET?” ….WHEREVER YOU GET YOUR PODCASTS….

[[MUSIC]]