I Only Know How to Say “Hej”
March 17, 2023
Author: Skylar Wallison
Editor: Keara Keelty
For as long as I can remember, “ja må hon leva, ja må hon leva!” (Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you), has always followed the English Birthday song. However, if you asked me to spell these words, or even say them in a Swedish accent, I simply could not.
I grew up with a Swedish grandmother, my mormor, who brought Swedish culture, food, music, and traditions directly to my life. Each summer, my family would travel back to Sweden to see the relatives we hardly saw, eat the limpa (bread) we hardly ate, and celebrate holidays we could only celebrate there. My family lives in the Swedish countryside, but growing up, we always called our home Ekedal. The property had a house for each of my grandmother’s siblings, and her mother (my mormormor, or great grandmother). Upon my arrival in Sweden, I would greet my family by saying “hej,” which is Swedish for “hello.” The Swedish, at that point, always stopped there. Swedish people are generally very fluent in English, and I seldom felt misunderstood. Yet, I constantly wish I could speak the language of a culture I feel so connected to. Going back to Sweden has consistently grounded me. It is a reminder of my family’s background, and my uniqueness. While I do not speak Swedish, I have spent my life attempting to be as close to the culture as possible.
In elementary school, every year around Christmas Time, my grandmother would help me organize Santa Lucia for my class. Santa Lucia, a Swedish tradition in which children dress up in white gowns, holding candles and Swedish gingerbread cookies (pepparkakor), was looked forward to by my classmates each year. We would all sing Sankta Lucia, in our shrill high-pitched, seven year old voices, as my grandmother passed out candles and silver tinsel. I have always regarded my grandmother as the keeper of traditions; she keeps childhood memories alive, and encourages us all to look forward to holidays. Growing up, I have consistently had Santa and “Swedish Santa,” or the Easter Bunny and the “Swedish Easter Bunny.” While as a child, this simply meant double the stocking stuffers and chocolate eggs. Rather, at 18 years old, I am charmed by my grandmother’s ability to connect us to her, and to Sweden. While she does not live in Sweden full time anymore, she has managed to bring her culture all the way to New York in the most special way.
I hope one day I will be able to speak Swedish, at least in bits and pieces. Step by step, I will begin to feel even more connected to Sweden. Perhaps, then, I will know how to say more than “hej.”
