Northerness

I'm a Nordic Nord, born and bred in Sweden.

Sweden is divided into three parts: Götaland in the south, Svealand in the middle, and Norrland in the north.

As for myself I live in Norrland. I live in the county of Angermanland by the Bothnian Sea. And some 60 years ago I was born in the county of Lapland, situated inland and to the north-west of Angermanland.

Both Lapland and Angermanland are northern provinces. They are both part of NORRLAND.

Now, this Norrland is a mythical part of Sweden. Just like Scotland of the British Isles. Or, say, Texas or some other rough-hewn part of the US.

I'm a Northlander. "En norrlänning" as we say. And many Swedes from Göta- and Svealand wish they were Northlanders. They envy us our Biblical erudition, a classic trait here: archaic tales of Northland farmers citing the Bible ever and anon, that's a fine heritage of ours.

They envy us our laconic way of speaking.

They envy us our stoic stamina.

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So then, do I have any examples of Svealand people wishing they were Northlanders...?

I have two: the poet Gunnar Ekelöf and the sculptor Anders Åberg.

The former wrote some poems about the log cabins, the rosy hue of the winter evenings, and the waves beating the shores of the Laplandic lakes.

The latter, Anders Åberg, was born in Stockholm but moved to Angermanland some years ago, starting a cultural theme park called Mannaminne. It's got old buildings, a tramway, a museum etc. It's a life-size piece of art, mirroring the smaller, wooden objets d'art that made him famous in the first place. One of these are to be seen at Arlanda Domestic Airport ("Inrikes"), showcasing the nearby town of Sigtuna in a pillar of wooden houses.

Anyhoo: Mr. Åberg fell in love with Norrland and then moved here, and then became a kind of local hero. He died in 2018 but Mannaminne lives on as a focal point for culture and goodtime, for "believing in your heritage" and all that, a fine mix of traditionalism and modernism, built log by log by Mr. Åberg himself. I myself visited Mannaminne in 2012.

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How shall I conclude this?

As an illustration of my Northlandic strain I might give you a poem.

It will be some lines about my Laplandic creed, called "My voyage".

My voyage began in the heart of Lapland
among drumming noids and yoiking saamis.

I danced to the rythm, sang to the northern light,
praised my creator and began my journey.

I lived among the flowers and the trees,
I read about gurus past and present,
and skimming the shelves of fantastic libraries
I finally found the Book of Books.

It was about a jewelry garden
where a wiseman held a sermon
about "I AM"... the lux aeterna

inside of you, inside all of you...
and so I learned to seek that same inner light
and be wise like him.

The voyage continues. In misty China
there is a beverage called "green tea";
I have drunken it -- and I have seen the promised land...

I'm just a human -- I'm just a human --
I'm just a human -- I'm just a human being...

Every day I brew some of that green brew
on my stove, and dream of a shiny garden,
where every tree was made of gold...

My collection of sacred books dwells safely
on my shelf. The Laplandic sceneries of my youth
are always with me. The green tea is still worth seeking.

The voyage continues...

Related
In Swedish: Mannaminne
Bibliography of Svensson
Ernst Jünger -- A Portrait (2014)
Science Fiction Seen from the Right (2016)
Actionism (2017)

Painting by Robert Svensson