In the last few weeks I have been reading the Kalle Blomkvist books by Astrid Lindgren for Nils (called the Bill Bergson books in English). These books depicts a story taking place in a small sleepy Swedish town during the 50s where the young detective Kalle solves different mysteries together with his friends Eva-Lotta and Anders while simultaneously fighting a friendly knighthood war with some other children.
The stories are just right for Nils and despite taking place 60 years ago without any mobile phones, TV programs and Wii games they speak to our imagination. While walking back from the Ulricehamn spring market yesterday, the town reminded me of Kalle Blomkvist home town. A quiet, peaceful place, gardens full of green trees and flowers, wooden houses in different colors, the sounds of birds and laughing kids but almost no adults out on the street. A typical sleepy town anno 2011, but it could just as well had been 1950. Not a car in sight and only a warm air making us all walk slower, dreaming of a dip in the lake.
In the evening, as the temperature went down a bit, a water fight started between the kids in the neighborhood, filled with energy and excitement, only taking a break for a quick dinner. Trying to get the kids to sit down a little bit extra with their parents to chat was out of the question but the appetite was great. At nine the girls (our girls had some friends staying over) went out to make peace with the boys and brought some chocolates to show their good intentions. I spent some hours reading while Jochem and Nils were watching Scoby Doo and at 10.30 pm I went up to tell the girls it was time to sleep only to find the top floor empty. They were still out and Jochem went out on a search only to find 8 kids at our neighbors place having a great time. I obviously prefer to know were my kids are but I can see the enjoyment these warm weekend evenings brings along and it makes me long for the summer holidays even more. At 8.30 this Sunday morning, Nils woke me up holding up his latest Kalle Blomkvist book and telling me please to continue reading. A small, sleepy town can seem boring but I think we all make a place into something by the way we approach it. Today I think it is just the way we all want it to be. Jochem is off working on the boat, Ingrid is playing in the garden at the neighbors, Nils is making a language game based on Egypt’s history (far too difficult so he need a lot of help) and Elsa is cooking. I sit in the sun with my books when I am not trying to solve some hieroglyphs.
We went from having a long winter to go straight into summer warmth and enjoyed a warm and cosy Easter in Skåne with my family followed by a five day reunion in Ulricehamn with our student friends from Lund in the end of April. 15 years ago I met Jochem while he was an exchange student at Lund University and now we met up with friends from that time. 24 people from Spain, Belgium, the Netherlands and France came to visit with their families and it was great to meet up again. Thank you guys for coming all the way over here and for being who you are!
Next weekend Harry, Miriam and Nell are coming over from the Netherlands. I hope our fantastic sun will shine on you as well. Tonight we are using the barbecue!
With all this sun I think everything is possible!!!
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