interview
Judith Rakers
Botox? No thanks!
© instagram.com/judith_rakers/
Judith Rakers is quitting as spokeswoman for the Tagesschau after 19 years. After escaping the hustle and bustle of the big city in her private life, she is now turning her back on the public at large in her professional life. In the GALA interview she reveals what her heart really beats for.
Leaving the usual path and starting over – that’s what many people dream of. If only there weren’t these eternal doubts. Judith Rakers, 48, took the plunge: some time ago she moved from the city of Hamburg to a house with a large plot of land in the middle of the countryside. A real challenge for the city girl who had never previously been involved in gardening, cooking or canning.
Judith Rakers: “You’re not leading the right life”
GALA: A move like this is brave. Have you ever thought that your dream could fail?
Judith Rakers: I just listened to my inner voice. And that voice grew louder and louder. When I was in my late 30s she said: “You’re not living the real life in the middle of the city with this constant focus on work. If you don’t want to be unhappy, you have to change something, Judith. Because you only live once.” So after separating from my husband, I moved to the country.
Were there any skeptics around you?
Many people warned me: It’s so far out, you’ll be lonely. And what happened? I have found my happiness. I believe life rewards us when we stay true to ourselves.
Have you ever been so brave?
Yes. When I moderated the “Hamburg Journal” at NDR, after six years I had the feeling that it was time for something new. So I quit and gave up my second mainstay alongside the “Tagesschau”. This also horrified many around me. A year later I was firmly in the saddle on the talk show “3 nach 9”. I believe that when you close one door, you have the chance for others to open. Sometimes it takes a while to make the jump.
But if there is a longing for a new direction, it is right to listen to your inner voice.
Instead of Botox and the big city, she focuses on freedom and idyll
They look great. Is it from all the fresh air, or are you helping out a little?
I think you can see that I’m not helping. (laughs) I think a happy smile is more attractive than any Botox treatment. I like the natural life, embrace my wrinkles and sometimes show myself on Instagram sweaty and with disheveled hair. This is me and I like it.
What are you planning for the new gardening year?
I will continue to lovingly look after my more than 60 types of fruit and vegetables – and cook and preserve a lot. I’m also renovating the horse stable so that my foal Charlie can visit me in the summer.
Unlike before, you now enjoy cooking yourself.
Exactly. I just go outside and see what can be harvested. Oven vegetables always work. I always have potatoes, herbs and edible flowers for decoration. Or I bake pancakes from fresh eggs from my chicken gang.
Sounds like pure idyll.
O yes! Sometimes there just isn’t enough time to really enjoy my little farm.