Grandma's story, in her own words

In the middle of writing a final paper for my teaching class, I suddenly remembered something that I have been meaning to do, and what better time than in the middle of an important paper? :) In any case, I needed a break, and it feels both fun and important to share this with you. These are my grandmother's own words, written by her own hand in 1996. She was always great at writing, (but with very poor vision) and her even when she was over a hundred years old her memory and mind were clearer than any bell I have ever heard. I think Grandma would be very happy to share these words with you (and I also asked Dad, who agreed with putting them out on my blog). This is her story, written in Swedish--a language she never formally studied at all, which makes her abilities astounding--and in this tale she tells of the family history, of people born, and died; choosing names; spilling chocolate on dresses; moving; attending school; the Spanish Flu; attending Sunday School and fishing as a child, and World War I. I know this is truly epic, so I am going to try to find the version that she wrote in English and I will share this with you as well. But this one is for anyone who wants to read it in Swedish. I have simply photographed the papers, since I want you to be able to read it in her own writing. Feel free to comment in the "comments" field below (as anonymous is easiest, I think). Enjoy!

My grandmother's story, in Swedish.
by Hildur Margareta Westhed (1909-2011)