I had an 8 hour layover in Chicago on my way to Minneapolis when I flew to the US last week so I decided to rent a car and see some friends to help make the time go by more quickly. The one friend that I was seeing works close to where we lived before we moved to Sweden so I decided to take a wander down our old street just to experience a taste of our former life. Our neighbors still live in the same house they did when we lived there so we knew that they had torn down our house, but even so, when I pulled into our old driveway and saw the empty lot, it kind of took my breath away.
It's a little weird when an entire part of your history is gone. Still, the memories of our time in that house and neighborhood are warm and inviting. Our neighbors remain close friends whose kids are all grown up now but we treasure those years of living next door to one another.
Funny enough, the mailbox was still standing and I was pleased that I still remembered the address! 
The entire area has changed tremendously with retail outlets everywhere. But it has been 13.5 years since we lived there so I guess the old adage that life goes on truly fits.
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It's a little weird when an entire part of your history is gone. Still, the memories of our time in that house and neighborhood are warm and inviting. Our neighbors remain close friends whose kids are all grown up now but we treasure those years of living next door to one another. 
The entire area has changed tremendously with retail outlets everywhere. But it has been 13.5 years since we lived there so I guess the old adage that life goes on truly fits.
Very interesting post. Reminds me about the Moberg book "Min stund på jorden" that was played on radio last summer. The emigrant,a Swede leaving in the early 20th century to California, talks about his memories of Sweden, and mentions that his conclusion after having returned to Sweden several times to visit, was that one can never go home again.
ReplyDeleteWhat you left is just not a place, but a time. He goes further by saying that many people recognized him vaguely, but his name was a name that when it was mentioned was followed by "he left to America". I realize that the time when you left was not as long ago as in this comparison, but just came to think of Mobergs book when I read your post.
Petter...I may have to read that Moberg book! I loved his Immigrants series and found great resonance in those stories, even though my experience is so much later! I always feel my split existence when we come back to the US. So much I love still and yet so many things that are so weird and foreign to us now! Thanks for checking in. Jodi
ReplyDeleteHi Jodi.
ReplyDeleteJust realized the title is
"Din stund på Jorden", and the english title is "A time on earth".
Loved the emigrant series to. This one is more based on an older emigrant recalling his memories of the Sweden he left, while events like the Cuban missile crisis is taking place around him. So it takes place later in time.
Here is the link to the book on Amazon.
http://www.amazon.com/Time-Earth-Vilhelm-Moberg/dp/0445044527/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1327759758&sr=1-2
Hi Jodi, At the end of a wonderfully busy week I have finally gotten a chance to read your blog entry. Rest assured that you and Doug will always be our neighbors in my heart, even if your house has been removed. So good to see you both! Thanks for the chance to reconnect, the Fondell's are good for my soul!
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