How to Become a Star. Christoph-Maria Liegener

      The girls tried on their new clothes in Tina’s room and pranced around to a couple of Rihanna songs.

      Then Tina confided in Lucy:

      “You know what my greatest dream is? I want to become a star like Rihanna. But how does one do it? How can I become a star?”

      Lucy giggled:

      “If I knew that, I’d have done it a long time ago!”

      They both shared the same dream. Should it really just go on unfulfilled?

      As the saying goes:

      “If you really want to do something, you’ll find a way.”

      That was the easy part. Tina really wanted to become a star. Really, really! She wanted it so badly that it almost hurt. Many a night she lay in her bed and wished for it with all her heart.

      Nevertheless, she just couldn’t bring herself to actually pray for it, though. It simply didn’t feel right. If there was a higher power that can influence things on earth, then it seemed rather foolish to bother it with something so trivial. It would really need to be a matter of life or death to do that! She hadn’t yet reached the point where she thought she couldn’t live without any fame.

      But there were also other ways. She had heard of various meditation techniques to help increase one’s concentration. Supposed to focus one’s willpower. Maybe that would make a difference. She had tried it, but so far it hasn’t helped.

      At least her strong will gave her a certain amount of determination. She nurtured her interest in music, constantly listened to it and sang along. Rock and pop were her favorites, but also country songs. And, of course, she loved the oldies. It meant a lot to her to know all the great classics. Such evergreens have repeatedly confirmed their collective permanent status. We would all still be listening to them if the one-hit-wonders of today were long forgotten.

      Hardly anything happened in her life to which she could not have played some song that matched the situation perfectly, or, if for some reason that wasn’t possible, she’d hear it in her thoughts. Indeed, she could hear music in her head, even when it wasn’t actually playing anywhere. Music was her lifeblood.

      If she wanted to be somebody in the music world, she ought to at least know something about it, Tina told herself. And she was right. She loved to daydream while she sang, and imagined herself standing on a real stage singing.

      Tina told Lucy about her dream and they laughed about it together. It apparently doesn’t happen as easily as that. Between wanting to be a star and actually becoming one loomed a very large gap. Nevertheless, they were wildly determined.

      They had to try something, after all.

      “Maybe we should start by at least looking like stars,” Lucy suggested.

      No sooner said than done. They got their beauty cases and made themselves up, each one helping the other. They did not stop until they were fully and completely satisfied with the results.

      In their minds, they were already stars.

      Dogs and Horses

      Whenever their schedules allowed it, Tina and Lucy enjoyed spending time outdoors with their animals. They each had a dog and a horse. The dogs were both German Shepherds that the girls had trained themselves. The two bundles of canine energy certainly kept the girls on the go. They constantly needed to burn off some of their immense energy.

      Sometimes, their parents took over this task when the girls weren’t able to now and again. Of course, this didn’t just simply happen without a few words of reprimanding from their parents about the responsibilities of pet ownership.

      These sermons were certainly not entirely out of place as Tina’s parents had allowed getting the dog only on the condition that she would take care of the animal herself. For weeks, the girl had filled her parents’ ears with nothing else but her longing for a dog. At first, her parents had refused:

      “You are not yet responsible enough to look after an animal on your own. In the end, it’ll be us who’ll have to do all the work with the thing.”

      Prophetic words. And that is exactly what happened, even though Tina swore up and down that she would do everything herself. Her parents had simply given in despite knowing better. Tina, like all girls, knew exactly how to breakdown her parents’ defenses by wrapping them around her little finger.

      For that, though, she had to regularly suffer through another one of their lectures.

      The girl, who in reality actually did need her parents’ help with the dog, knew what to do in these cases. She could do it without even thinking about it. She simply kept silent for as long as her parents spoke, put on a grave face, and nodded her head in acknowledgment from time to time. When it was finished, she solemnly promised to improve. That was usually it, then, and she could go again.

      The girls’ absolute favorite activity was to ride out with their horses and dogs at the same time altogether, which the animals also greatly enjoyed.

      Both their horses were still rather young mares and the girls loved them almost a little bit more than their dogs. They had both been present as the mares were being broke and had quickly formed a close bond of trust with the animals. The mares were kept at a nearby horse ranch that bordered on vast open land ideal for riding: endless fields and forests with an adjacent stream.

      The girls adored riding out together – especially without saddles. They knew their horses and could communicate with them through the slightest of movements.

      How exhilarating it was to fly through the mowed meadows in a hunting gallop – the dogs right behind! How they all deeply enjoyed it! Naturally, they took breaks to allow the animals to rest, to stroke them, and stick a few treats in their muzzles!

      The highlight was to ride down to the stream and let the animals wade in the shallow water. The melody from “I Follow Rivers” by Lykke Li filled their heads as they sang out loud together.

      Unfortunately, they were only able to let the dogs run free through the fields and meadows when it was not currently mating and nesting season. This covered the entire time from February through June. Tina’s parents had to repeatedly educate the two girls on this. At first, Tina didn’t want to hear it.

      “Our dogs don’t hunt,” Tina asserted.

      “Even if your dogs could suppress their hunting instinct, they are disrupting the wildlife. They can unwittingly scare smaller animals to death,” her father cautioned.

      “Aren’t you just a bunch of party poopers!?” Tina moaned.

      “Perhaps you might have some consideration for the little baby animals?” her father admonished her. Then he patiently explained to her that discipline in this case also lies in her own interest:

      “If the forest ranger sees any dogs chasing wild animals during the closed season, he will shoot them,” he said bluntly.

       The girls certainly did not dare risking that. They were still left with the dog exercise areas, at least. Plus, dogs were allowed to be off the leash almost everywhere else, provided they stayed on the paths. It all worked out perfectly fine in the end since the dogs were well-trained.

      Tina loved all kinds of animals, not only her horse and her dog. Whenever she could, she always helped any animal in need. For example, at the onset of winter, she gathered up the few hedgehogs from the yard that were too small to survive hibernation. They were then kept in the basement, and she fed them throughout the winter until the nights started to become warmer and the little hedgehogs could be released again.

      Even in these instances, it was revealed that she had overextended herself and couldn’t have done it without her mother’s help. How often did her mother