Guardian Angel III

 

I present Guardian Angel III, my son Gary Lundgren who did an almost impossible task, finding 3 days when he could put himself in this position where he who towers over me could find a seat with room over his head. He is officially retired and had recently made one Trans-Atlantic trip that took him and his wife to a ship traveling up the Norwegian coast so close to Sweden but not free to drop in here at 3B.

He took on the Guardian Angel role to come here to see what he could do to help me and to get up to date on my new life, home alone at 3B supported by the Swedish Home Services system staff members and my very own family angels.

Another Frodi Sister - Here is Gary with Ann Frodi's younger sister, Majt at the entrance to 3B. You will learn more about Majt as Guardian Angel V or VI perhaps but here we stick with what Gary had to offer his home-bound father.

Gary and his wife had already booked a vacation in Jamaica but he was able to squeez in a 3 or 4 day trip to Göteborg, move in at 3B and get to work in my apartment  while I told him all about my new life where I never can leave my home alone.

Immediately, here on Swedish time 6 hours different from State of Maine time, he went to work in my kitchen. He restored it to like new condition listening to me and telling me about his life as a grandfather with three grandkids, all three of whom are my Great Grandchildren.

Here I am reading a card from Daphne Lundgren who gets to spend quite a bit of time with her Grandpa. Photo of Daphne coming, I hope.

I first met Daphne when she was only a few months old, and that was fun. I will not be making any more trips to the USA so I rely on the grandchild trio to make cards just as I did about 87 years ago, cards I  still have.

Gary and Majt really hit if off together talking non-stop a mile a miuute while Ann and I sat on the couch that opened up was Gary's too small bed. Majt and Ann left and Gary got his first chance to hear about my local support team, a man from Ethiopia, a woman from Somalia, another woman, a Kurd from Turkey whose parents had fled from Turkey to Borås where my helper was born - do not know her name yet. There is also a woman from Bosnia who cleans my apartment, and last but not least, a Swedish woman who grew up here and knows a lot about support offered in a building across the street from me where girls with troubled lives get help to restore those lives to a life that is at least better in one or more ways.

Signed off here at kl. 17.01 on the 9th, and sent the link to this blog to Madeleine our Red Cross leader at Kåken, the restored prison that houses a library and the Language Cafe where we Red Cross volunteers get to know visitors who come from just about everywhere. I miss being there since my 25 years as volunteer gave me one of the very best things I have experienced in Sweden.

Today, April 10, I want to note that Gary also has become a very fine writer and shares with me an interest in many different aspects of life here and in America where many troubling things are happening. He has become my number one best correspondent and writes replies to all of my Emails by placing paragraphs in colored text between mine. 

In other words, there on the printed page is a conversation that took place as if we were talking with each other but are not. We read here in Sweden that school kids no longer know how to write by hand and that leads them to being unable to express themselves by writing in their phones. When one writes by hand, one's mind functions differently and more slowly, often with good results.

I hope to add photos. The next Guardian Angel will most likely be Annika Frodi-Lundgren, Circus Annika. After Annika, I will close Part One of these blog posts by telling you about the people who help me here and also about my Red Cross colleagues who I miss so badly.

Wednesday, April 10, kl. 16:15 sun shining down on 3B.