Christmas evening at Lugnet ,Gotland..

So many nationalities, languages, cultures and religions..

They came some weeks ago from Afganistan, Eritrea and Iraki Kurdistan- all muslims and one Buddist..and they celebrated their first Christmas in Sweden.

Scarred from wars, these young newly arrved refugees are experiencing this new country with its strange customs.. And they all had the strength to come to this warm and welcoming traditional Swedish Christmas party arranged by Magnus who was also the Santa and brought gifts to all..

"New gloves and a bottle of After Shave!" Oh, the joy so far away from home..
I feel priviledged to have been invited to share these precious Christmas moments in peace with these guys carrying too heavy a load of memories from the recent past on their young shoulders..

Christmas..

Christmas supper: A beautiful butterfly suddenly lands on the smoked roe and I happened to have the camera at hand..

Eftertänksamhetens kranka blekhet..

Sjuttiotalet var den veritabla avfyrningsrampen för den moderna råkapitalismen... Rymden är således idag så överfull av gamla rymdsopor att de nu tenderar att trilla ner och slå oss i huvudet.
PE

How I will spend X-mas?

Some days ago I found these beauties in full December bloom in my garden - these pretty Christmas´ roses..

Well..today it arrived. My furniture from the old days in Saltsjöbaden which has been stored for ages in containers and storages. Sweet feeling it was like to see old friends again. Nostalgic too. The memories of the past: A drum set my son used to play. A lovely doll´s house my daughter wished for so eagerly far back in the past..So I will spend X-mas unpacking..

It was all there like nothing happened.

And now it is stored in the old, cold and non-isolated part of the my house I call "mormors". (Grandma´s)
Because in this oldest part of the house she lived (the first occupant of this house) in the 19th century catering for her children and bringing up a few orphans too without electricity and water. Here she supported herself as a widow by running a little store selling produce from the neighbouring farms. Due to the vecinity of the church, they held many a wake in these rooms I have been told. When they run out of space in the church mortuary, they brought the coffins here and stored them in these rooms in waiting for the funeral in the nearby church.
Everyone - alive or dead - was taken care of in this God loving household..

Now my boxes are stored here waiting to be unpacked..Will I have the courage to enter here, alone, in the night around 12 o´clock to find some stuff I need? The answer is: "Yes!" Being born in the Taurus sign I am awfully and annoyingly pragmatic and completely rational! Maybe not very romantic after all..

I started to move in some furniture into the living room that is waiting for much needed new wallpapers - after Christmas. It feels quite cosy already..So I have no time this year to do X-mas baking and decorations and all the things connected with the Holidays. No. Maybe next Christmas, I will be done with the moving-in process..
In writing this, the church bells start tolling 6 o´clock outside in the darkness. The very same bells that tolled for my mother some years ago before she was laid to rest following a bright and springlike funeral service in this country church in the glorious month of May with nature sparkling in its most colorful abundance..

..som kvinna..

Dom betraktade henne skeptiskt och undrade kanske med aningen förakt i det brummande tonläget:
"Vad fasen tror du att du håller på med egentligen?"
Hon vände sig mot dom och sa: "Jag? Som kvinna? Åh, ingenting särskilt. Ingen speciell planering. Ingen speciellt rak eller utstakad kurs alls..
Men dock: med alla flaggorna i topp samtidigt!
Som kvinna!"
Då sa dom inget mer, gubbarna.
Vände sig om och lommade hem var och en till sitt. Planerat, tryggt och invant.
Nog hade dom - litet envar, önskat att dom kunnat haft alla flaggorna i topp dom också.
Så där litet lyckligt, lyxigt och oplanerat. Mer för fulla muggar. Liksom..

(P.E. i ett försök till tolkning av vännen Johns målning.)

(Målning; John Torrey, California)

Att äga ett valnötsträd..

När köpet var avslutat häromdan av mitt gamla gotlandshus (en del är byggt på 1800-talet och en "nyare" del tillkom 1918) med den makalösa trädgården, stack en av de söta gamla damerna som växte upp här denna lapp i handen på mig. Här hade hon nogsamt skrivit upp alla frukträd och buskar som finns i min nya, okända 100-åriga trädgård :
"Äpplen, Ingrid Marie och Oberländer närmast garaget,
Stenkyrka vit Astrakan närmast huset
Höstäpplen
Päron
Greve Molke gråpäron
Hösthallon närmast pumpen
hallon och björbär
valnötsträd"
Tack för den lappen, Ingrid!
Jag sprang genast ut i trädgården och spejade nedanför valnötsträdet! Och mycket riktigt: i en krans runt trädet låg en hoper valnötsskal! ! Den bär frukt!
Ser fram emot nästa års skördetid - alla hasselnötterna och valnötterna de 100 liter hallon man brukar plocka här! Förutom alla äpplen och päron! Vilken lycka!!

For Hinda..

HAPPY BIRTHDAY DEAR HINDA!
I wish you a great birthday my sweet daughter-in-law! Your first birthday as a mother! Hip hip hurray and bundles of love and thoughts from us all in Sweden! Wish we could be with you, Malcolm and little Thalia to celebrate today!

Facebook users beware..

(Photo: Getty, BBC)

Facebook's 120 million users are being targeted by a virus designed to get hold of sensitive information like credit card details. Koobface' spreads by sending a message to people's inboxes, pretending to be from a Facebook friend. It says "you look funny in this new video" or "you look just awesome in this new video", BBC reports on December 10th. Read more..

10th of December..

..and the world marks UN Human Rights Day..

With X-mas just around the corner..

..and Gotland considered to have the best and mildest climate in Sweden, I found some signs of the lingering autumn.

The apple tasted lovely but the rasberry was kind of sour. The former owners of my house inform me that they picked over 100 liters of rasberries in the garden last year. And they left a bottle of homemade rasberry squash for me in the kitchen when I moved in - made by the deceased former proprietor of this kind and friendly house..

In Gotland, there are even some people growing their own grapes for winemaking. One of these is an old school mate of mine from the old days at Whitlockska Samskolan.
Article about his brave efforts here (in Swedish though)
I will have a go and plant a few vines myself in the spring on my southern lime covered wall that should be warm enough for the grapes to ripen.. My sister who lives almost next door has plenty of very nice tasting grapes in her garden ripe and ready for picking around mid-and September..