I’m back to blogging after being away a couple months. The reason for not blogging these months is long and complicated, and to take the higher moral ground, I’m not going to go into details. Part of the delay in blogging was not knowing what to say or how to say it. Part of the delay was that the wind got knocked out of my sails, and I was in a funk for over a month. Some of the wind has returned to my sails, but I know I’m not fully back to my A-game yet. (Sorry for the mixed metaphor.)
So what happened? My oblique description is that I was seriously misrepresented to others (who aren’t my colleagues), and I was accused of threatening to go to the press with an issue. I had not even discussed the issue with the union, but fortunately, when a colleague invited me to share the issue with the union, there was overwhelming support for me. There’s lots of back story that happened way before I arrived in Sweden, but my arrival happened to correlate with some stuff. And I was blamed for it due to one person’s perception, and it threatened my continued work here. It was very messy.
The results are that there has been wonderful concern and unanimous support by colleagues and the union. There have been intentional efforts to restore my reputation by correcting the misinformation. And most importantly, the source of this catastrophe is leaving. So, while there still are injustices left unattended, I’m trying to move forward.
Obviously, I won’t cover 2 months of life in much detail, so let me start with today’s events and over the next weeks, I’ll reflect on some highlights.
Today, Anya and I celebrated the completion of her three weeks of International Baccalaureate exams, which ended this week, by going to a renown and funky vintage store. It took about an hour with 2 bus rides and then a half-hour walk out in the middle of rural farmland to a vintage store in an old barn (with very poor signage).
Yes, Anya loves vintage fashion, especially the 60’s and some of the 70’s. She’s visited most of the vintage stores in Uppsala and Stockholm (and listens to a history of fashion blog), but this vintage store in the middle of nowhere has quite a well-regarded reputation for volume. And since they are only open in the summer (probably because the barn isn’t heated), things in the spring haven’t been picked over. (Though, I realize that my taste is quite different. Though I did see the jean jacket I wanted as a kid in the 70’s—just like my friend, Robin, had—but it was kid’s size.) Anya said this was one of the most amazing days of her life—at least in Sweden!
It was a lovely day to be on a journey and walking together on an old country road. The lilacs are in full bloom, and we followed the road through the middle of a farm (farm house on one side with the barn on the other side) which had a long row of lilac. The air was filled with lilac fragrance (my highlight of the day). Yes, I love lilac.
On our way back, we discovered that this country bus route only had buses coming by every 3 hours on a Saturday. Fortunately, we were right by a country church and could sit in the shade in the well-tended graveyard.
There were things to explore, including several rune stones.
Later, when there was a flute concert inside, it meant that we could use the bathroom. We waited around 1.5 hours for the next bus.
We decided to have dinner in Uppsala at Anya’s favorite burger place. Then we picked up a few things at the grocery story and walked home.
It was a great day with Anya.
With blessings,
Beth
Dear Beth—
Thanks for this update. We are sorry to learn something about the unfair ways you have been treated. It’s good to know that you found some good support from your colleagues. Pam and I continue to hold you on our hearts and in our prayers.
Blessings,
Charlie