150210 Light

As anyone in the civilized world would know, Stockholm is the most beautiful city in the world. Why would anyone chose not to live here? How come London is a metropolis of more than ten million, whilst Stockholm has to do with a meagre two. Well, not even that. Why?

Well, honesty is a cruel mistress and I have to confess. There may be one or two, perhaps even three caveats in living in Stockholm.

There can, for one, be the slightest of lack of light in winter.

When working in London some years ago, I worked at the Swedish School of London. The school, full of Swedish teachers, rented localities from a private university in Richmond Hill, southwest London. And each spring the locals at the university looked in amazement at the swedes when they worshipped the sun.

After a long, cold and dark winter there suddenly is sun! Sun that isn’t just a bleak copy of a sun just above the horizon, but the real thing. A big, bright blob that actually is warm.

Whenever this happens in springtime Stockholm, you can see people standing in the streets, heads turned south, tilted upwards, not really praying, but basking in the rays of the life giver.

This is not really necessary in London. If there is sun (a big IF, I know) there is always some warmth in it in south England, even in the bleakest of midwinters. But old habits die slow. I know collegues of mine in London who are oldtimers to the British capital. But I see them posting pictures of ”book in sun”, or ”bare feet in sun in February” on Facebook, thus showing their scandinavianeness. (hmmm, is that a word?)

But this year is different. It may all be because of climate change and that particular impending doom, but the last three days have been just… what is the word… ah…: Lovely.

Blue sky, yellow sun, receding snow and – since this is spring and we are in Stockholm – a lot of people who have just stopped in their tracks, turned south and lifted their head. The three month curse of utter darkness has come to an end…