Xmas letter 2019

(you can click on pictures)

It is twenty years since we started our annual end-year letter. We look back with pride over the love and friendship that have carried us through the various joyous experiences and challenges. As times goes by, we have wondered if there is merit in continuing with our summaries, as Facebook, Twitter, WhatsApp, etc., have become preferred substitutes for letter and even e-mail writing. Alas, we have decided to persevere for as long as we are able to take pictures and sit by the computer. Challenging as the annual tradition is, it has become our way of celebrating life and documenting what we may not remember as memories fade…

We spent three weeks in January-February in Sri Lanka with friends (so called Åkalongo group) comprising AnneMarie and Roger Bergström, Mats and Merete Boberg, Agneta and Tor Ericsson, Gerd and Gunnar Settergren and Christina Skarpe and us. Apart from Mats, none of us had ever been to Sri Lanka. We rented a chauffeur-driven minibus, which took us from Galle in the south up to the center —finally spending a few days in Colombo. A splendid time for each one of us, with visits to 7 of the 8 UNESCO-inscribed World Heritage sites in Sri Lanka—including visits to tea plantations and other places of cultural interest. It was later very sad to learn of the Easter Sunday massacre that took 259 lives. Devasting!

We ended our Sri Lanka trip by visiting Botswana, mainly to spend time with Julia’s ailing mother (92 years old). Time was too short for a stint to the wilderness. A few weeks after our return to Sweden, we were off to Bali, Indonesia, to join our son Moleko and his family in celebration of his 50th birthday. Quite a long and exhausting trip, but a pleasant experience. Julia hardly unpacked her bags before returning to Botswana, where she spent six weeks caring for her mother.

We had time to travel within Sweden, specifically to Gotland with two of our grandchildren and were also glad to finalize a project we had been going around and around for months—the installation of solar panels on our house. Midsummer brought some of the members of the Åkalongo group to Sigtuna for the weekend. A nice annual tradition, as we rotate the hosting for the Midsummer and New Year celebrations in our homes!

We have hardly ever followed political developments in Botswana as much as we did during this, 2019, election year. While the Botswana Democratic Party (BDP) is continuing to be in power since independence (in 1966), the process to the elections was the most dynamic ever. We watched the people of Botswana fired up, mainly through social media, but peacefully embracing the polling outcomes. The rains finally arrived in Botswana, commencing on the day of the inauguration of President MEK Masisi—seemingly declaring the elections done and dusted.

November is a dark, gloomy and miserable month in Sweden. We struggled hard against the urge to be in a warm place, but finally succumbed to visiting our friends Eva-Carin and Claes Norrlöf in Malaga, Spain. Very refreshing visit!

The rest of the year was spent with family and friends, whenever possible. Per continued with his folk-dancing, photography, book-club and membership of various associations and Julia tagged onto some of the activities during the months she was in Sweden. We also participated in the march "Fridays for Future" in support of actions against climate change. As grandparents, we care for the future of our grandchildren—even though we have tended to fly more often than may be necessary!

As we reflect on the happy moments we have had and the sadness from the loss of friends and relatives who were dear to us, we continue to be thankful that we are soon about to cross over to another year.

May 2020 bring joy and prosperity to all our friends and relatives, wherever we each find ourselves on the globe. We are sending this from Botswana where we enjoy hot weather.

May 2020 and beyond bring happiness and peace!

Per and Julia


	(you can click on pictures) It is twenty years since we started our annual end-year letter. We look back with pride over the love and friendship that have carried us through the various joyous experiences and challenges. As times goes by, we have wondered if there is merit in continuing with our summaries, as Facebook, Twitter, WhatsApp, etc., have become preferred substitutes for letter and even e-mail writing. Alas, we have decided to persevere for as long as we are able to take pictures and sit by the computer. Challenging as the annual tradition is, it has become our way of celebrating life and documenting what we may not remember as memories fade… We spent three weeks in January-February in Sri Lanka with friends (so called Åkalongo group) comprising AnneMarie and Roger Bergström, Mats and Merete Boberg, Agneta and Tor Ericsson, Gerd and Gunnar Settergren and Christina Skarpe and us. Apart from Mats, none of us had ever been to Sri Lanka. We rented a chauffeur-driven minibus, which took us from Galle in the south up to the center —finally spending a few days in Colombo. A splendid time for each one of us, with visits to 7 of the 8 UNESCO-inscribed World Heritage sites in Sri Lanka—including visits to tea plantations and other places of cultural interest. It was later very sad to learn of the Easter Sunday massacre that took 259 lives. Devasting! We ended our Sri Lanka trip by visiting Botswana, mainly to spend time with Julia’s ailing mother (92 years old). Time was too short for a stint to the wilderness. A few weeks after our return to Sweden, we were off to Bali, Indonesia, to join our son Moleko and his family in celebration of his 50th birthday. Quite a long and exhausting trip, but a pleasant experience. Julia hardly unpacked her bags before returning to Botswana, where she spent six weeks caring for her mother. We had time to travel within Sweden, specifically to Gotland with two of our grandchildren and were also glad to finalize a project we had been going around and around for months—the installation of solar panels on our house. Midsummer brought some of the members of the Åkalongo group to Sigtuna for the weekend. A nice annual tradition, as we rotate the hosting for the Midsummer and New Year celebrations in our homes! We have hardly ever followed political developments in Botswana as much as we did during this, 2019, election year. While the Botswana Democratic Party (BDP) is continuing to be in power since independence (in 1966), the process to the elections was the most dynamic ever. We watched the people of Botswana fired up, mainly through social media, but peacefully embracing the polling outcomes. The rains finally arrived in Botswana, commencing on the day of the inauguration of President MEK Masisi—seemingly declaring the elections done and dusted. November is a dark, gloomy and miserable month in Sweden. We struggled hard against the urge to be in a warm place, but finally succumbed to visiting our friends Eva-Carin and Claes Norrlöf in Malaga, Spain. Very refreshing visit! The rest of the year was spent with family and friends, whenever possible. Per continued with his folk-dancing, photography, book-club and membership of various associations and Julia tagged onto some of the activities during the months she was in Sweden. We also participated in the march "Fridays for Future" in support of actions against climate change. As grandparents, we care for the future of our grandchildren—even though we have tended to fly more often than may be necessary! As we reflect on the happy moments we have had and the sadness from the loss of friends and relatives who were dear to us, we continue to be thankful that we are soon about to cross over to another year. May 2020 bring joy and prosperity to all our friends and relatives, wherever we each find ourselves on the globe. We are sending this from Botswana where we enjoy hot weather. May 2020 and beyond bring happiness and peace! Per and Julia