I was the daughter of a clergyman
a suffragette
a teacher
a Girl Guides’ leader
interested
in nursing
books and horseback riding
a religious idealist

I loved an artist
left with him
lived through 4 wars
worked hard
for the meatballs of life
gave birth to 3 wonderful
fantastic children
so this really
hasn’t been
too bad.

Ham

poem in the style of the Spoon River Anthology by Signe Hammarsten-Jansson, mother of Tove Jansson

"After running out of more creative ideas for my presentation, I ended up choosing Finland's largest mattress manufacturer, Unituli Oy, as my topic."

from a student email

"Ratio of Finns to saunas in Finland: 4:1 " January 1991

"Number of people per sauna in Finland: 2.5" November 2003

Harper's Index

"Opinion is divided on whether winter is getting colder in Delhi or slightly warmer, or whether the cold is lasting longer or ending sooner. But everyone agrees that it persists in showing up. B. P. Yadav, a weather forecaster, said average temperatures in January ranged from lows of 44 degrees to highs of 68 degrees, or sunbathing weather in Finland."

New York Times article on a cold snap in India

"Social workers and religious leaders have urged tighter gun laws, more vigilance of Internet sites and more social bonding in this small Nordic nation known for its high suicide rates, heavy drinking and domestic violence."

New York Times coverage of 31.12.09 Espoo shootings