Who knew Santa Claus lived on Odengatan in Stockholm? The kids from the Kindergarten school ”Tårtan” got it all figured out. Any talk about Santa ”not existing” is just baloney.
The light in the deepest hour. The celebration of Lucia takes place every year on December 13th. Girls and boys visit public places, like the National Museum of Art in Stockholm to sing hymns. Lucia Lucia symbolizes the end of the long, dark winter nights and the return of the light.
A Princess takes a Princess to lunch in Stockholm. When Lilian May married Bertil Gustaf Oscar Carl Eugen – more known as just “Prince Bertil” she became a Swedish Princess and Duchess of Halland. He died in 1997 and Princess Lilian passed away in 2013. She was a beloved member of the Swedish royal family and being treated to a nice lunch by the Crown Princess Victoria made her day some years ago.
Soon the guest will arrive to say their final farewell to their beloved friend, father and husband. Björn Wrange was a man of many trades, one of them was building boats and his wish was to have his funeral ceremony on one. The Florist Jill WIndahl from “Atelier Fleur” arranges the flowers while Matti Andersson, Björn Gäfvert and Sven Aarflot rehearse. In the kitchen, Kicki Anderberg Wadhagen, one of Björn’s friends, is arranging the wine for the meal after the funeral. “Funerals are so sad, there is always one less partying.”
It´s the eight of august and Juhan Aslat and Marja has just walked out of Ammarnäs church as husband and wife, The date of the wedding was something that their reindeers decided. In the fall, they roam free in the northern wilderness. Juhan and Marja met on the dance floor of Jokkmokk market seven years ago and the wedding dinner speech from Marja’s best friend is a keeper for the ages.
“Juhan is the best *quarter to four in the morning pick up there is. If you wouldn’t have taken him, I would surely have.”
Fighting faces of First of May.
Waiting for the meeting to start, 8 degrees celsius and drizzling rain. The backbone of the @socialdemokrat party shows up even if the weather is grim. Estimates say that approximately 5 000 marched through #Stockholm today, celebrating the international worker's day.
The climate, the weather, the climate, the weather.
The debate surrounding climate change and it’s effects on weather patterns around the world is a storm in itself. A vast majority of scientist agree that the short term effects are due to long term problems.
Stockholm snowstorm, november 2022.
Milorad’s three-year old nephew Matteo wants to help.
It’s Christmas and the whole family is gathered at Milorad’s home in Gothenburg. 24 years ago today, he came home again with an Ambulance plane - after spending 37 days on a ventilator at the burn unit at Uppsala Hospital. Twice during the coming months infections almost took his life. Milorad Stankic survived the catastrophic fire in a dance hall that claimed 63 peoples lives. One of them his best friend.
Milorad’s body needs daily training and physical therapy to function properly. (With a little help from a small friend, today’s session was somewhat easier.)
The phone call came on a Tuesday. Lisa Jormvall´s husband Jouko had a fever. He had contracted the Covid-19 virus. A short while it looked liked he was going to pull through. He still had his appetite and seemed strong, but a week later he passed away. Lisa was devastated that he died alone, in Corona-isolation.
Lisa and Jouko met 1956 when a friend of Lisa needed a double date to a dance. The dance partner of her friend had a brother, ”that was even more handsome”. Lisa and Jouko got married a few months later and four years after the wedding they were blessed with a baby daughter, Susanne.
Jonas Widigsson from the Funeral home has managed to get a rare permission and arrange for Lisa to say a last farewell to her husband at the Södersjukuset in Stockholm. Lisa puts her hands on her necklace, made out of their wedding rings, and tells Jouko how much she loves him. Sixty three years after their wedding death has separated them. But for Lisa it is not the end.
”It has been a wonderful story of love, and it continues.”
The summer day smiles at Suss Holm and Barbro Johansson when they stroll down Djurö Kyrkväg on the island of Värmdö outside Stockholm.
Gullviva, johannesört, gulmåra, förgätmigej. The names of the wild flower fauna of Sweden has a definite poetic ring. Todays harvest will soon adorn the coffee table at Djuröhemmet, the home for old folks where Barbro lives since her stroke last year, She likes living here, it reminds her of her childhood home and she thinks the staff is lovely. Djuröhemmet has been spared from the Corona-virus, much to the credit of the management, quickly establishing strict protocols, among them a ban for visitors and face shields are worn all the time, even outside. The nurse Sussi Holm brings Barbro and the other guests for walks as often as the weather permits. She loves it.
”My job is to work with activities during the day, it is the greatest job on earth, the joy an appreciation I get back is truly immeasurable.”
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”We don’t know if he will survive.”
The last two months of the pregnancy were difficult. Ultrasound showed that the heart of the baby did not beat the way it should. Cecilia and Marcus were forced to check in at the hospital every morning for extra check-ups. The medical staff wanted the pregnancy to go full term but at the same time not risk the baby`s life. Three weeks of daily check-ups later their doctor finally made the decision and Coriander was born February fourteen, 2008.
Valentine’s day.
Coriander was born with a very rare genetic disease. He cannot walk, talk or eat, but there is nothing wrong with his communication skills, expecially when dad plays the hard rock broom during the feeding sessions in the family kitchen. Marcus loves his son dearly.
”You can never, never forget that it is no fault of the child. Sometimes, as with any child, you have to put up boundaries, but you cannot tell a child like Coriander that he cannot listen to that song 400 times. If it makes him happy, you just do it. Even if it drives you a little bit nuts.”
We all have a cross to bear but the role as Jesus can be taxing when you are just four years old. Thelma, the donkey, is in real life a twenty six year old pony with a lot of kid experience on her CV. Normally she works at a riding school for children. Elin Johansson, Lily's mother, has cleverly disguised her with two long knitted ears.
The Västerlövsta parish, two hours north of Stockholm is trying a new method to get people to church during the Corona pandemic. A Drive-in sermon during Easter, that turns out to be such a success that the vicar, Katarina Björklund is forced to hold two sermons.
"Pray for all the sick, all the lonely, for the staff at the hospitals, working around the clock. Pray for our anxious children. Pray for the pandemic to stop. Pray that we can fight it together. Amen"
Royal Happiness, June 19th 2010.
The year 1809 Sweden had just lost Finland to Russia. The Finnish territories had been Swedish for 700 years and Sweden lost a quarter of its area and a third of the population. The Swedish authorities wanted a potent new King with military muscles that could reinstate some self esteem and sent a young lieutenant on a mission to France to ask Napoleons permission for the selected candidate, a danish aristocrat; Fredrik Kristian of Augustenborg. Instead he took it upon himself to ask two of Napoleon’s generals if they would consider being King of Sweden.
They both declined and the lieutenant asked a third General - by the name of Jean Baptiste Bernadotte - who was interested. When the Swedish authorities heard what the young officer had done he was arrested upon homecoming.
"Pojke, om här ginge rättvist till, borde du sitta där varken sol eller måne skiner"
"Boy, if this was to play out in a justified manner, you would be put in a place where neither sun nor moon shines."
However.
Jean Baptiste Bernadotte was elected King August 1810 and became great, great, great grandfather to Crown Princess Victoria - who 200 years later married the love of her life Daniel. Together with their parents they are cheered by tens of thousands of people outside the Royal Castle in Stockholm
Love conquers all.
Every year more than 50 000 couples get married in Sweden. Ida and Henrik Lindberg have just tied the knot at Stockholm city hall and their daughters Ellie, 3, and Lea 5, make the wedding photographer's work for his money.
Veronica Maggio, the Swedish singer. A shoot for an interview with Dagens Nyheter Magazine.
Senior Citizen Summer Camp
To break social isolation for senior citizens the Stockholm ”Stadsmission” sponsor summer visits for 250 people. Most stay for a week, and the majority are regular guests each summer. Einar, 101 years old, is one of those. He finds his visits here very relaxin - even if it seems as many of the female visitors pass by his place of napping. As a true gentleman he greats all of them warmly but his heart is somewhere else. Next week his fiancée will arrive, she wants to marry him.
Platform of love
When Gothenburg Central train station opened up for business 160 years ago there were 16 employees that handled all traffic and support services. Today there are more than 27 million passenger coming and going each year. Harald was one of those and he got a warm farewell from his beloved Matilda when he left for Stockholm.
Are you allowed to bring your Nazi-shield on the subway?
When the Neo Nazi-manifestation, (150 men standing still, chanting - surrounded by thousands of counter protesters and police) was over, the black clad men with their shields headed back home with the help of the public transport system mingling with normal commuters.
The Nazi proclaimed "takeover of Stockholm" turned into scenes that could have been written by Monthy Python. Funny, if it wasn't so serious.
Safe haven
The red line of Stockholms subway makes it’s way toward over the bridge that spans lake Mälaren. Mona Alnashi are awaiting her turn to step into the frigid spring water. Those gathered are all Mandaeans a 2,000-year-old religious group, among the communities hardest hit by the sectarian bloodletting in Iraq after the American invasion. In Sweden they have found refuge and peace. Mona Alnashi likes the bond that still exist between her and the old home country. “This is just like a family gathering. A very big, and wet one.”
Finally, Magnus and Ingrid was going to get answer why Emil, their even year old son, was showing strange symptoms. They walked into the meeting at Uppsala Akademiska hospital with a mix of anxiety and hope.
It was a Tuesday, August 26, 2014. The day Emil got his death sentence.
The doctor told them that Emil had something called X-ALD, a genetic disorder that in its most severe form only affects boys, slowly killing them. If the disease is discovered in time it can be stopped, but it was too late for Emil.
In Sweden all newborn babies are screened for 25 different, rare and curable diseases. Emil’s family knows that it is too late for their son, but do not want the same fate affect other boys. Five years ago the National Board of Health and Welfare initiated a process to include X-ALD into the baby-screening. That process is now concluded and the final recommendation is a no. Magnus and Ingrid has read the motivation behind the negative outcome. They do not agree with the reasoning and are upset.
”In a way, this means that Emil’s life is not worth anything. They will send more families into this disaster.”