"SUNDAY'S CHILDREN" " Good morning, Mr. Eriksson." " Good morning, Mr. Bergman." "My father will come in the 3:00 train." "I'll be waiting for him." " I see." "Daddy was in Stockholm and he preached for the King and the Queen." " That is a honor." " Then they invited him for dinner." " The king invited him?" " Yes, the king." "Daddy is an old friend of the royal family." "He's a good adviser for them." "Very good." "Good morning." "I'm going to Rättvik today and to Orsa tomorrow." "That will be 2.75." "Thank you." "I think that the Queen has a crush on my father." " Hello, Dufnäs." " From Lännheden, 14:52." "Thank you." "Pu!" "Pu!" " There you are." " Welcome home, Erik." "Hello, Pu." "Won't you kiss me?" "How's my boy?" " Fine." "Dag, come here." "What's wrong?" "Come, Dag." " Do you have everything?" " Must we go home straight away?" " No." "But come in time for dinner." " Do you have your watch?" " It's broken but I can ask." " Yes, do it." "Ya!" "Matte!" "Matte!" "Dagge!" "Dagge!" "If you want juice and biscuits you must come and get them." "Jonte, come and have yours." "May I try it?" "I don't mind, Pu." "But you must ask for your mother's permission." "Pu, don't you prefer somebody else's breast?" "I will bring more molasses." "Pu is a baby." "It shows." "Damn you!" "We were just joking, Pu." "We must hurry or we'll be late for dinner." "Have you been crying?" "No, but I was very angry." " Was it your brother?" "Someday I'll kill him!" " You wouldn't do that to Dagge." "They'd send you to a reformatory." "Don't laugh!" "I won't, I promise." "We laugh at many things." "It's not such a bad thing." " You can laugh as well." " No." " Why not?" " Because I don't want to." "In the name of Jesus, bless our meal." "Amen." "Potatoes?" "There is a storm in the air." "I can feel it in my knee." "The soil is dry and the stream water is low." "That's not good for the daisies." "I found a place." "A meadow full of flowers and wild strawberries." "Dag and I have been there the day before yesterday, or Tuesday." "I see you've gone out during the week, Marianne." " You should come, Erik." "It's lovely." " It sounds beautiful." " Mother is coming today with uncle Carl." " Very good." " Uncle Carl owes me two kronor." " I will pay you." " So your mother is coming..." " Bring the dessert." "Yes, she will come to discuss our visit to Mångsbodarna." "And to welcome you." "Carl is coming because she can't walk by herself." "Her foot hurts." "We'll see if uncle Calle knows how to shoot with bow and arrow." " It sounds strange." " What?" "That she takes the trouble of walking all the way from Varoms." "It'd be easier for us to go over there." "We're young." "You know how mother is." "She must be feeling bored and lonely in that big house." "Won't any relative come visit her this summer?" "Not even Ernst?" "I don't know." "In any case, she will come." " What about dinner tomorrow?" " As always." "Why?" "I'll be preaching in Grånäs, so maybe I won't be back before 4:00." "I don't understand, Erik." "Are you saying that the return trip will take you three hours?" "It's possible." "I can't escape coffee afterwards." "The Vicar has written asking me to stay after the holy communion." "I can't leave before 2:00." "And the train to Insjön leaves only at 3:30." "You all must forgive me, Karin." " Are you coming, Pu?" " What?" "What?" "What?" "Will you come to Grånäs with your father?" "It would be nice, don't you think?" " You should accept." " Only if he wants to." "You don't have to, if you have things more fun to do." "No..." "Have you finished eating?" "Very well." "We thank the Lord for this meal." "Amen." "Thank you." "To the kitchen, children." "Fun?" "Going out with father?" "Don't laugh at your brother or you'll spend Sunday doing your homework." "Dagge should keep his mouth shut sometimes!" " Don't go away." "Dry the tableware." " Just having a pee." "Is Pu there?" "Pu!" "He can't get angry like this." "I will talk to him." "We must close the doors or this place will be full of flies and mosquitoes." " What a lovely afternoon." " It won't last long." "Close the window." "Is it Lillan, playing so beautifully?" " If it is Dag, he must quit the piano." " Or flies will come in." " It was not a rat." " Don't laugh." "I was scared as a rat." "Hello, grandma." "Pu has grown up so much." "Or is it only his nose?" "Will you come home tomorrow?" "We will read from "Treasure Island"." " I can't." " Why not?" "Daddy is going to preach in Grånäs and wants me to go with him" "Sounds lovely." "We can read twice as much next Sunday, then." "Hello, Erik!" "Welcome to Dufnäs." "I hope you can take some rest during your vacations." "You're very kind." "Thank you." " Hello, mother." " Hello, Calle." " Let us have some brandy." " We're out of brandy." "Come." "Here is Lillan." "Isn't she beautiful today?" "I will tell you something." "A female rat stops with her hind legs..." "Got it?" "The mouse..." " I'll take Lillan." " Give her juice." " How lovely." "We'll have shade." "Let's have coffee now." "Aunt Emma can sit there and mother Åkerblom there." " Auntie can sit here." " I'll sit in the same place as always." "I got a letter from the baroness." "She says she'll go to Rättvik soon." "I want to shoot with bow and arrow!" "Who will challenge me?" " I bet two kronor." " You're not weighing your risks." "His mother died some years ago." "1, 2, 3, 4, 5..." " Ten meters." " It's too far." "You have a handicap." "Five meters." " Ankara." " They say the weather is terrible there." "10." "No, 3." "Very good!" "Seven points." "Are you having heart problems again, Miss Enerot?" "We shouldn't waste time talking about my health." "But, to be honest, I have stomach problems." "Let me help you." "Shall we do it?" "Maybe we won't go out this summer." "No, we won't." "You can improvise, Erik." "If you want to come, come." "If you want to stay, stay." "Do as you wish, Erik." "Imagine if we could make this old bitch shut up once and for all." "Please don't think that we are being rude, but..." "You can stay at home if you want, Erik, but I arranged..." "You won!" "He has so much fun." "He's like a child." "Close your mouth, Pu." "You look like an idiot with your mouth open." "And you are not an idiot, are you?" " Pu, want to come and get the milk?" " Yes." "Hello." " How was it?" " I won." " Really?" " Yes." " What did you win?" " Two kronor from uncle Carl." "He had made a bet." " What will you buy with that?" " I don't know." "Candy, maybe." "Are you getting married soon?" "I hope you have a lovely wedding." "Stop talking about that." "Can you see any fish?" "Be quiet or you'll scare them away." "We must wait." " The watchmaker hung himself here." " What?" "You say "what" as if you hadn't heard me, but you did." " Where did he hang himself?" " Don't you know?" "Between those bushes." "Yes, he killed himself." "Everyone says he did it because of a lost love, but it's not true." "Why did he hang himself?" "I don't know." "Lalla knows the whole story." "Ask her." " Is he a ghost?" " A ghost?" "They say he shakes the bushes." "I never saw anything." "You must be a special person to see ghosts and elves." "My grandma is a medium but I'm not." "I am, because I'm a Sunday's child." "I didn't know that." "I was born on the 14th of July, 1918, at 3 a.m.." " What have you seen?" " So many things in so many years." " How interesting." "You must tell me someday." "You're just trying to show off." " I could return after death." " What for?" " I could tell you how it is." " How is what?" " On the other side." " Thank you, I don't want to know." " I'll come smoothly, in daytime." " What nonsense, Pu." " I promise you." " If you're dead, you're dead." " And the watchmaker?" " That's only a story." "Let's kill two calves tonight." "Tell Mrs. Bergman and Mrs. Åkerblom that we'll have calf steaks and liver." "The pastor loves calf liver." "My son told me he's coming today." "He was at the station and Eriksson told him that the pastor would come from Stockholm at 3:00." "What's wrong?" "Do you want candy, Mr. Bergman?" "Take it." " Thanks." " They're good, aren't they?" "I bet they are." "Would you like some coffee, Maj?" "I've made it for the workers." "We must head back home but thanks anyway." "Aren't you happy that your father is at home?" " Yes." "We are going to Grånäs tomorrow." "Daddy will preach there." "I know." "Too bad I can't go." "It's too faraway." "The boys have put the car for repairs in Borlänge." "Don't forget to warn the Madams about the meat." "I won't." "Good night, Mrs. Berglund." "Good night, Maj. And good night to you, little Pu." "Good night, Mrs. Berglund." "Careful!" "Come, Pu." "Tomorrow is the day of Christ's transfiguration." "It's a special day." "How come?" "God spoke to his disciples." "It sounded like a thunder coming out from the clouds." "A voice said:" ""This is my beloved son, with whom I am very pleased." "Listen to his words."" "God wanted to say that Jesus was his adored son." " What's so special about that?" " Where I was born and raised the day of transfiguration was very special." "In what way?" "You could find out how much time you would live, for instance." "If you go by dawn to a place where someone committed suicide, you will find out plenty of things." " Did you try it, Lalla?" " No, but my stepsister did." "By the way, she was a Sunday's child." "Why did the watchmaker hang himself?" " Nobody knows for sure." " Can't you tell us, Lalla?" "No." "In his workshop..." "there was a big pendulum clock." "It was tall, slim and dark, and it had golden ornamentations." "It kept track of time with dignity." "It rang every hour and half-hour, with a very sad sound." "But one day..." "it changed drastically." "Some days, the hands would move in both directions for hours." "And sometimes it would be as silent as death." "The clock became a major worry for the watchman." "He fixed it and changed its mechanism, its cogwheels, its pendulum and its pointers, but to no avail." "One day he dismantled the clock to inspect its mechanism." "A cogwheel immediately jumped and cut his hand." "A lot of blood sprung out." "It fell on the clock and the table." "He had to run to the clinic to be stitched." "One night, he woke up when the clock rang for 13 times." "Or was it 14?" "The watchmaker sat on his bed and stared at it." "Where did you find wild strawberries at this season, Maj?" "Next to the old mill." "They grow twice every summer." "I went there and saw strawberries everywhere." "Then it got dark." "There's some water in the kettle." " We were talking about the watchmaker." " Oh, that." "Won't it frighten Pu to listen to this story at this time?" " I'm not afraid." " How do you know so much about him?" "He spent his last year with Anders-Pers here in Solbacken." "Anders-Per told it to grandma." "He left a letter saying:" ""To be opened after my death."" "Tell the story now." "Well..." "He saw that the clock's door opened by itself." "And he heard a strange noise coming from the inside." "Like a cry, I suppose." "The watchmaker was terrified." "But he couldn't stay in his bed." "He came near the watch." "Both hands were pointing at 6." "The upper door was open but the lower one cracked and opened a little more." "The watchmaker got down on his knees and opened it completely." "He illuminated the interior of the clock." "At first, he didn't see anything." "But when he got used to the darkness, he saw another small door inside." "It was open and he saw who was crying." "It was a small creature." "It was on its knees, crying desperately." "It was neither a small girl nor an elf, but a real woman." "The watchmaker noticed that the clock had stopped completely." "Now, he could only listen to the woman's crying and the wind." "The watchmaker thought that the little woman was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen in his life." "Despite being so small." "Did he fall in love with her?" "No one knows if he really loved her but something happened to the poor watchmaker." "What?" "He rescued her from her prison." "He washed her face and her blood-stained lips with a rag." "He wrapped her in a blanket and laid her on his bed." "The watchmaker lit a kerosene lamp and stared at her." "She had closed her blind eyes." "Maybe she was asleep." "She was lying there for a while when the clock began to crackle as if it had gone insane." "It was an unbelievable racket." "The watchmaker realized that the watch wanted to kill him." "He ran to his workshop and brought a steel hammer." "It was a hammer on one side and an axe on the other." "Quickly he attacked the watch and crushed it." "Just when he was going to crush the clock's face he thought he'd saw an evil and sinister face" "behind the steel cogwheels and the clockworks." "It must have been terrible." "While he was crushing the clock, the woman was screaming insanely." "It was not a human scream." "It sounded like an animal caught in a trap." "The watchmaker tried to calm her down, but she wouldn't stop screaming." "He held her tight, caressed her and talked to her." "Maybe he asked her to marry him, I don't know." "But she wouldn't stop screaming." "The watchmaker cried and begged, as if begging for his own life." "It was indeed a matter of life or death." "Then the woman bit his hands." "She freed herself from him and dragged herself away." "The lamp on the table fell down and started a fire." "I don't know how, the letter didn't mention it." "But the watchman ran after her and seized her." "He kissed her but she bit his lips." "It was a terrible fight." "I cannot tell you everything that happened there." "Then he hit her with the hammer, just like he had done with the clock." "He had gone mad." "Once he calmed down, he dug a hole in the garden and buried the woman and the clock." "Less than a year after that, he hung himself." "There is a flower in the heart," "It has no color yet, Dear Lord in heaven." "Dagge is in love with Marianne." "What does a child like you know?" "He told me." "He wants to be an opera singer like her." "Don't lie about your brother." "It is ugly." " Go to bed, Pu." " I can stay up till 9:30." " Who said so?" " Grandma." "Maybe it was like that in Mrs. Åkerblom's house." "But now we are in pastor Bergman's house, and the rule is 9:00." "Don't you feel well, Pu?" "I'm fine." "But I'm sleepy." "We'll listen to Marianne sing, and then go to bed." "Close your mouth." "You look like an idiot with your mouth open." "I know: only idiots do that." "To listen to songs from the lips of a blessed angel." "God, how beautiful it is to die listening to pure tones." "Float softly, my soul, in the river." "In the obscure purple river of Heaven." "Sink softly, joyful spirit, in the sweet embrace of God." "God, how beautiful it is to listen to songs from the lips of a blessed angel." "God, how beautiful it is to die listening to pure tones." " What are you reading?" " None of your business." "Is it the book with pictures of naked women?" "You can see it, but it will cost you five öre." "There you go, five öre." "She has beautiful hair, down there." "It's enormous." "I like this one better." "She looks like Marianne." "No, she's not." "This one is beautiful." "I'd love to bite her." "You're crazy." "You shouldn't be seeing these pictures." "Go to bed." " What are you doing?" " Shut up, for God's sake." "Dagge..." "Dagge, are you sleeping?" "It's so humiliating." "I told you you didn't have to come." "I had to come for a reason." "You and the kids are like strangers to me." "And what's the matter now?" "I don't want to be alone." "I've had my share of being alone." "Then your mother comes with that clown, Carl." " Without asking." " You're being very unfair." "Mother took the trouble of coming here to welcome you." "She came to harass me." "It thrills her to know that we are living in this filthy pigsty." "It's a piece of shit." "With this incredible landscape." "That woman knows no love." "She's hungry for power, she's wicked and she hates me." "I never thought that a servant of God could hate so much." "I can't forgive someone who wants to destroy me." "You're sounding like your poor mother." "Completely maniac." "I can't forgive someone who hates me for existing." "Listening to you is horrible." "Horrible?" "Don't you say anything?" " Should I say something?" " You can say what you think." "So you're saying that I should say what I think." "Do you want to know what I think?" "There's been something on my mind the whole year." "To be honest, since Lillan was born." " I'm not sure..." " But I am and you won't stop me." " I'm going." "Don't worry." "It's good to know where we're standing after all." "I want to go away with the children for a while." "I want to move to Uppsala." "There is a five-bedroom apartment in my mother's building." "The rent is low." "It's sunny, remodeled, with a bathroom and comfortable." "Dag and Pu will be close to school." "It's right in front of it." "Maj will look over Lillan." "And I'm thinking of taking my job back in the Academic Hospital." "Nurse Elisabeth told me that they are expecting me." "I'd be closer to my brother, Ernst and my friends." "I will have some freedom." "Therefore..." "So you want to get a divorce?" " I never said that." " But you want to break up." " You're abandoning me." " Erik, calm down and listen." " You want to take the children." " I never mentioned a divorce." " Did Torsten give you these ideas?" " No." "Not Torsten." " But you've talked with him." " Of course I did." " You talked about us with a stranger." " He's our best friend." "He wants us to be happy." " And your mother too, and Ernst and nurse Elisabeth." "Is there anyone you haven't discussed this with?" "Karin, you talk with everyone but me." "You listen to everyone but me." "You are humiliating me, Karin." "Humiliating." " Now you know about my plans." "You asked me and now you know." "Come, sit on the bed." "Please, Erik." " I don't want to feel sorry for you." " No?" "How kind of you." "You are so difficult." "I don't want to feel sorry for you." "You already said that." "But when you come here, you are impatient and restless." "There's always so much to do at home." "You are always worrying about your sermons." "We never have the time to travel together." "If we do, I pay for it and you frown because of that." "There's the parish work, the house and the children." "It's a heavy burden sometimes." "You're going?" "I need to go for a walk." " Now, at night?" " Right now." " I'm going with you." " No." "I want to be alone." " You can't go like that." " Don't tell me what to do." "Don't go." "I can't stand it when you go away." "There is something you must know, Karin." "This is the last time you threaten me about going away with the kids." "The last time." "You and your mother..." "I am tired of being humiliated." "It wasn't a threat, Erik." "Very well." "Then we know where we're standing." "I suppose we do." "I've always been alone." "Now I'm really alone." "You got up early." "I was going for a walk in the forest." "What for, if I may ask?" " To know if I can see a ghost." " A ghost?" "A spectre." " Where would you find it?" " At the suicide place." " The watchmaker?" " I'm a Sunday's child." "Do you really believe in ghosts?" " Lalla and Maj say that they exist." " I see." "The pipe's smoke scares away the mosquitoes." "Especially at this time of the day." "Will you come with me to Grånäs?" "We'll take the train to Djurås and then we'll take a bicycle for the final 10 kilometers." "What do you say?" "Jonte and I made plans of building railroad tracks from the lavatory to the birch tree." "Jonte will bring the lead." "Jonte said he will come to play with me." "I see." "You don't have to decide now." "Think about it." "I thought that we could take" "the train that leaves Dufnäs on Sunday at 8 a.m.." "It carries timber and it has only one passenger wagon." "We can drink Pommac with lunch." "Spring-Winter 1968" " Hello, nurse Edith." " Hello, Ingmar." "We must be quiet." "Erik is resting." "He had a tough night." "His back and his hip were hurting." "Then you and I can discuss things." "Would you like tea or coffee?" "I made scones." "No, thanks." "I had a good lunch." "Here are Erik's slippers." "Use them." "We can talk in my room." "The worst part, Ingmar, is that" "Erik is constantly worried about his finances." "And it won't help when I tell him that we are wealthy." " I will talk to my father." " He thinks that we want the apartment." " The apartment?" "Yes, he sometimes says that you and I want to grab it." "That it is only a matter of time till we have him admitted in a hospital." "It's so despairing to be unable to help." " And how are you, Edith?" " I'm always fine." "It worries me that your father is so sad and isolated." "He suffers so much, Ingmar." "And I can't do anything about it." " Then we have the death subject." " Death?" "Yes, I think that your father is afraid of death." "He won't say it openly but I know what he thinks." "And since he tries not to show that he's worried, he must also deal with that on his own." "I can't understand his anxieties." "He is a preacher." "He should trust in Christ's mercy." "I think..." "that he lost his faith." "Poor Erik." "He helped so many people." "Even me." "His faith was so pure and strong." "You know that, Ingmar." "He was transparent about his beliefs." "In the year after Karin's death we often used to talk about the miracle of reunion." "He was convinced that he and Karin would reunite in another place." "Purified and transfigured." "And I think that God is so compassionate in allowing an old man to be certain of his reincarnation." "Now I don't know, Ingmar." "I'm crying." "Don't mind me." "I feel so sorry about your father." "He was such a good man." "Why must he be tortured this way?" "It's cruel." "I can't understand why." "I want to do everything possible for him to have a little peace and joy in his last years." "How silly of me." "I'm crying like a little girl." " Are you sure you don't want tea?" " No, thank you." "Maybe we should wake your father." "I have a copy of that transfer that I made." "Take it, Ingmar." "Yes, come in." "I thought that Karin had returned home." "Has Karin returned?" "Sorry." "I'm not completely awaken." " Hello, my son." " Hello." "Come to my room for a while." "Within 20 minutes." "I'll ask Karin." "No need to worry." "Erik often thinks that Karin is here." "He gets sad when he realizes he is wrong." "It's partly because Karin is dead, but most of all because he feels he's been exposed to ridicule." "I'll go with him." "Shouldn't you go back to bed?" "It's only 5:00." "You can sleep for another three hours." "No." "I want to be here with you, father." "I'm sorry." "I didn't really want to come." "I was wrong." "When will I die?" "When will I die?" "Always..." "Always..." "Always..." "Always..." "Always..." "It's 7:00." "Time to shave." "It was wonderful to swim by the sawmill but logs were everywhere." "It was wonderful to be alone and swim naked." "I prefer the archipelago." "There's no danger of drowning there." " Is Pu coming with you to Grånäs?" " I don't know." "I asked him but he doesn't seem too excited." "I'll go with you." " Aren't you staying with Karin?" " I'd love to ride my bicycle... with you." "I'll go to Grånäs with you." " Were you awaken?" " Yes." "But I'm going to bed now." "I'll go to Grånäs with you." "Pu, it's time to wake up." " Leave me alone!" " Get up!" " Damn you!" " Come." "Now the ears." "If there's something in your ears, I must clean it off." "Now you must only brush your teeth." "Open your mouth." "Like this." "No." " Now the trousers." " No!" "Come on, Pu." "You must look beautiful for the mass." " I don't want to!" " There you go." "You always stink of urine." "Don't you ever open your fly to piss?" "Shut up!" "Blow." " How can you have so much mucus?" " He keeps sticking his fingers there." "If you find something, we'll share it." "Sudd!" "Sudd!" "Come, Sudd!" " What's wrong?" " I'm not feeling well." " You'll feel better when you eat." " I have to shit." "After breakfast." "Come." "I have to shit now." " Run to the toilet." " I have to shit now!" "Use the bucket." "Pull down your trousers." "There, hold on." "My tummy hurts so much." " You'll be fine in a minute." " Is Pu there?" "Breakfast is ready." "Pu's got a stomach ache." "We'll go right away." " Pu's got a stomach ache." " Is it serious?" " No, we'll go down afterwards." " We'll wait for you." "Damn it!" "Damn crap!" "You don't have fever." "You're not sick, are you?" "It smells terribly." "Was it something you ate?" "Damn it!" " Is something wrong with you?" " What?" " Are you sad?" " No." " Something worrying you?" " No." " I need to clean my behind." " We can use the red paper." "No!" "It's Dagge's." "He'll kill me if I use it." "We'll use the towel." "I'll wash it later." "Stand quiet." "There you go." "Feeling better now?" "This will be a hot day." " Maybe it will rain." " Yes, I felt it on my knees." "Milk got spoiled for the first time this year." "It's difficult to breathe." "Yes, but the fields need the water." "Yes, it's raining." "There will be good fishery today." "Hello Calle." "Come in and have something to eat." "You look as if you lost a friend." "Come in, dear Carl." "You're carrying a suitcase." "Anything wrong?" " Shall I bring you food?" " No, thank you." "Don't bother." "I wanted to sit for a while." " A drink?" " Yes, thank you." "Thank you." " There you go, brother." " Thank you." "Erik, you are a true Christian who will extend his kindness to the worst man on earth." " Something happened?" "Something always happens, no?" "There is a time for sowing and a time for reaping." "You're obviously planning to travel." " I plan to move out." " Move out?" "Where to?" "I don't know." "The important thing is to maintain my dignity." "What's wrong?" "I think I will talk with Erik." "What I have to say is not suitable for the children." "Stay and we'll discuss it tonight." "I'm in a hurry." "Pu and I are going to Grånäs by bicycle." "You are a good man, Erik." "Thank you, Lord, for this meal." "Amen." "We must leave at 9:45." "Did you hear, Pu?" "Calle, you can stay for a few days." "We'll get a room for you." "Isn't it, Karin?" "I must go." "I'll be preaching in Grånäs today." "Do you want to win 25 öre?" " Of course!" " Well..." "I'll put the money here." "And what must I do?" " You must eat this worm." " What?" " Close your mouth, you look silly." " I'll never eat a worm." " What if I give you 50 öre?" " No, never." "75 öre, then." "It's a lot of money." "Why do you want me to eat a worm?" "It's disgusting." "The boys asked me to evaluate your courage." "What?" "You can enter the secret club and win 75 öre on top of that." " If you pay me 1 krona..." " You're nuts." "For that amount you'd have to eat grandma's shit." " Do you have 75 öre?" " Of course." "Here are another two coins of 25 öre." "And here is the worm." "So?" " I'll eat half of it." " That's what I thought." "You're a coward." "You'll never be one of us." "Give me that damn worm, then." "I've eaten the worm." "Open your mouth, I want to make sure." "Now close it so that the worm won't come out again." "What the hell is this?" "If you are dumb enough to eat a worm for 75 öre, you're too dumb to deserve them." "And too dumb to be a member of our club." "I'll kill you!" "Let's go, Sudd." "Dag, bring the bicycle." "Where is the bag?" "What are you going to do now?" "I must take a photo." "Has the train left yet?" " There's a storm in the air..." " Farewell everyone." "Enjoy your fishery, my dear brother." "Goodbye, Pu." "Spread your legs." " Hello, inspector." " Hello, pastor." " Hello, Mr. Eriksson." " Hello, Pu." "So you're travelling on a Sunday with your son." " I'll be preaching in Grånäs." " I see." "I suppose that you'll go to Djurås by train and take a bicycle afterwards." "Must I carry it as baggage?" "No, just take it to the freight wagon." "There are no passengers before Leksand on Sundays." "Get down, Pu." "You mustn't hang on the window, it's dangerous." "Father." "Why don't you like being with us in Dufnäs?" "I don't like Dufnäs, that's all." "I like Mother, I like my sons but I don't like Dufnäs." "Why don't you like Dufnäs, father?" "I feel as if I'm suffocating, if you know what I mean." "No." " I can't make my own decisions." " Does grandma decide for you?" "We can say that, yes." " Why do you hate grandma?" " Hate her?" "Dag said that you and grandma hate each other." "Grandma and I disagree on many things and then we fight." "It's very difficult." "Especially in the summer, when we live nearby." "There are many problems then." "Winter is better, when you grandma is in Uppsala and we are in Stockholm." "I love grandma." "So you should." "She loves you and you love her." "Will you be happy if grandma dies, father?" "Now you're talking rubbish." "Why would I be happy?" "Sometimes I think that Mother is dead and that makes me sad." "Maybe you wish that I were dead when I scold you, no?" "I never wished you were dead." "Forgive me, Pu." "But sometimes you also ask silly questions." " I'll go to the ferry." " Be careful." "Good morning." "How are things?" "Were you taken by surprise?" "Weren't you expecting it?" "No, his health was fine." "He helped with the harvest." "And when Mother brought him coffee, his eyes were closed." "I thought he was sleeping, but he was dead." "I had forbidden you to do that!" "Don't you know that you could slip and nobody would see you?" "Don't you get it?" "Where did I go wrong?" "What did I do wrong?" "I opened Mother's safe box and found her diaries." "She kept a diary since 1913, when she got married, till two days before her death." "Every single day." "Did you know that Mother kept a diary?" "I asked her every now and then about it but she told me that she took notes about things that happened." "But, but..." "I read it again and again" "and slowly I realized that I never knew the woman I lived with for 50 years." "Karin talks about a fiasco." "A life fiasco." "Can you believe it?" "This is what she said:" "One day I read some words in a book." "The words were "life fiasco"." "I was breathless and realized that "life fiasco" were the precise words." " Mother was so dramatic sometimes." " I ask myself what did I do wrong?" " I'm sure that you and mother talked." " Yes, of course we talked." "I mean, Karin talked." "What could I say?" "Karin had many opinions on how we were supposed to live our lives." "She wanted me to answer all her questions." "What could I say?" "Karin thought that I was lazy." "Not lazy in my work." "Just lazy." "I'm sure you understand." "Last night I dreamt that Karin and I were walking down the street." "We were holding hands." "We used to do that sometimes." "At the end of the road there was an abyss." "Karin immediately got away and jumped into the abyss." "Sometimes I think that Mother is nearby." "It's like a longing, nothing more." "Yes, you're right." "It's that, it's that." "And then you find out that..." "I don't know." "I'm not following you." " What have I done wrong?" " I can't tell you." "I feel like I've lived a life different than Karin's." "I always thought that this was my life." "One can't do much about it." "She was very docile, like a puppy." "Like Sudd." "Mother was more intelligent than me." "She read so many books..." "and she travelled." "I lived for my emotions, my impulses." "Now I feel forlorn." "Perhaps I've lived wrongly." "I'm not complaining." "It's not that." "But when I try to interpret Mother's diary, it's... it's..." "The hardest thing is that we were so afraid." "Afraid?" "Afraid?" "Afraid that you'd be angry with us." "It was so sudden." "And we didn't always know why you were scolding or beating us." " You're exaggerating." " You asked me." "I'm answering." " I had a good conduct." " No." "We feared your attacks." "Not only the children." "Do you mean that Karin was afraid of me?" "I think that Mother was afraid, in a different way." "We learned to dodge, to lie." "I must tell you I'm ashamed of discussing that now." "Two grown men." "You are comic as well." " Mother was not the kind to keep quiet." " Mother was the mediator between us." "You were always furious with Dag." "I remember how you used to beat him with a stick on his bare skin." "He bled." "And mother simply watched." " You're reproaching me." " I'm not reproaching you." "I said that this dialogue is comical." "You asked me and I answered you." "We were terribly afraid of you, to put it dramatically." "Yes..." " I remember that Karin said..." " What did she say?" "Sometimes she would say..." "when she was angry, that I was severe." "It's written here, in several places." "Erik won't give in." "He can't forget nor forgive." "He is a preacher." "Erik knows so little about himself." " You punished me, didn't you?" " Punish?" "Isn't it a punishment to read mother's diaries day after day?" "She even objected to my sermons." "So you and your brothers must be happy about this." "Don't go yet." "We're going in one minute, silly." "I got scared." "You could have drowned." "Nobody would have seen you." "I got scared." "When we get scared, we get angry." "Maybe you already know that." "I slapped you too harshly." "It just happened." "I wasn't thinking." "I'm sorry." "Pu..." "Shall we go?" "Yes." "When you reach the pulpit, pastor, remember to turn clockwise." "It's an old tradition in this church." "We always pray for the dead before ringing the bells." "I will start with the large bell after your "amen"." "The vicar said that he would come to welcome you." "But he said he'd be coming later." "He had to give communion in Utby." "I must remember you, pastor, that coffee will be served after the communion." "Perhaps you could give me the psalms, pastor." "The boy can help me distribute them." "Thank you." "I will ring the bell at 10:50." "That's when people come in." "They usually talk a little before mass." "We will not disturb the pastor now." "Come." "Give me a "1"." "A large one." "And a small "5"." "That's it." "There you are, Pu!" "I just spoke to your father." "He said you were here." "Hello." "Hello." "This is my son." "You two have the same age." "Eight, isn't it?" "Next week it's Konrad's birthday." "Say hello to Pu, Konrad." "You can play after mass." "You don't have to come for the coffee meeting." "It may be too long for you two." "Come." "Holy, holy, holy is our Lord Almighty." "The earth is filled with Your kindness." "Don't go." "I'm in a hurry." "I'll be back tomorrow." "Just a couple of minutes." "I hate all sorts of emotional blackmail." "Each one of us must answer for his own mistakes." "If you are searching for sympathy or forgiveness, you came to the wrong person." "The past has gone to the region of unsolved mysteries." "Am I willing to dig up the past again?" "No, thank you." "At least, let us be friends." "I will help you with practical problems." "I can keep you company." "But no, I am not interested in emotional outbursts." "Do you know what I mean?" "Yes." "Well, then." "Goodbye, father." "I'll see you tomorrow." "And while he was speaking, a light shone upon them." "And a voice from the sky said:" "This is my beloved son, with whom I'm very pleased." "Listen to his words." "And when his disciples heard this, they knelt down with fear." "But Jesus came, touched them and said:" ""Rise up." "Fear not"." "This is my beloved son, with whom I'm very pleased." "Listen to his words." "And when his disciples heard this, they knelt down with fear." "But Jesus came, touched them and said:" ""Rise up." "Fear not"." "I have an eczema." "Go out and play." "You don't have to stay here." "Konrad, show Pu your lovely room." "Go with Konrad." "What do you say?" " Horrible!" "Can you open the window?" " No, it would rip the tissue paper." "Should I preach or make a funeral?" "I have a coffin in the closet." "No." "I don't want to play communions or funerals." "I don't believe in God." "You don't believe in God?" "Then you are an idiot." "God stinks, if you stop to think about the way He's done things." "You are the idiot." " Are you calling me an idiot?" "Those who believe in God are fools." "You, my father, everybody." " Shut up." " No, you shut up." "Thanks for the coffee and the company." "Come visit us in Dufnäs." "Karin would love it." " Thank you very much." " Thank you." "Thank you, Erik." "Why don't you stay for dinner?" "There's a storm coming." "The rain will be refreshing." "It won't bother us, will it, Pu?" "What?" " Say goodbye to Pu." " Goodbye." "If you believe in God you are crazy." " Be careful." " Goodbye." "Goodbye." "Goodbye." "I can't find any." "Yes, here." "Take it." "Put it in your hand and squeeze it" "This is a very rare flower up here in the North." "If you eat that flower they say that you get dizzy." "Or speak in different languages." "It's probably superstition." "What do you think?" "We should go around the world like this." "I am also a Sunday's child!" "I am also a Sunday's child!" " Wait for me." " Hurry up, Pu." " Can't we run over there?" " You run." "My neck is wet." " Wait." " Hurry up ." " Are you wet?" " Soaked." "Did you see the lightning?" "Sit down." "Could it be the Judgment Day?" "What do you know about the Judgment Day?" "Angels sound their trumpets." "And a star falls into the sea and turns it into blood." "If it is Judgment Day, we are lucky to be together." "Really?" "I must take a piss." "Your son is here." "What did he say?" "I couldn't understand." " What did he say?" " He's giving you his blessing." "Can't you hear it?" "May you find peace." "In the name of the Holy Ghost." " Are you cold now?" " No, I'm fine." "Watch out!" " Did you get hurt?" " No, just wet." "See the wheel?" "We'll continue on foot." "The next train station is quite far." "Look at the wheel." "Can't we make it straight?" " No." "We'll ask for help at the train station." " What?" " Nothing." " What?" " Nothing." "Translated by Sateri." "Kindly sponsored by Dudu and Stiller." "Swedish spelling corrections by AnotherStranger."