The Father of Someone’s Mother

‘He arrived on the airplane with his briefcase and long coat. He was almost a man of the world, but he was also a victim of his own system. It must have been stressful having two women and nine children. He must have possessed an unbelievable amount of self-control in relation to feelings.’
Nils

‘He was a special man, and he never hid that either. He kind of made himself special. It was always fun when we went out. But at the same time, there was also this feeling of hope. Hoping that his behaviour did not suddenly become too embarrassing.’
Pernille

‘He was very consistent in what he said. For that, I think he met some reluctance, but for him, it was very important that no one was innocently trampled on. I miss sharing my life with him. He was good at caring for both families. We were not exactly overjoyed, but the concept was what we wanted.’
Lisse

‘He made my mother very upset. He could have been there more for us as children. Then maybe we could have avoided some of the emotional challenges we face today. It is not something we talk about much. Personally, it made me not want to have children myself.’
Anders

‘He was funny, witty, and dry. A peculiar and strange fellow. We often swam together, in all kinds of weather. In that way, we were both fearless. We knew every rock below the water, and we were never afraid.’
Asse

’It was kind of as if his moral concepts had been formed sometime in the 1920s, and they had not really changed over time. Suddenly, he was captured by a great love that he did not know how to deal with. At the same time, he had a wife that he cared a lot about.’
Karen

‘My father was asthmatic as a child. He could not run or play football, and tried to excel at other things later in life. By means of education and by means of love. He was knowledgeable and intelligent. I believe he had an extra gear in comparison to the time that he was born into. Seen from the outside, he was an upstanding citizen who was a doctor, with a great house, wife and children. And a permanent mistress.’
Fyr

‘He was very self conscious. He liked playing the role as a God. But he also reflected a type of seriousness which showed that he had encountered very dark places throughout his life. Whether or not you would have called it depression, I do not know. But I’m sure, he had confronted life’s great questions.’
Anne

‘I’m saddened that we never got to live as adults together. I think it was his authority. We were raised in the way that we were not allowed to speak until the adults gave permission. Old school.’
Lars

’When we went on a daily trip into town, there was an enormous amount of respect surrounding him. The sort of respect that would remind you of what it would be like meeting Albert Einstein. It was not respect because he was a good person or gave money to the poor. It was more an intellectual sort of respect. With authority.’
Jakob

’He had a very strong personality, at times domineering. He was difficult to get close to. He was not a person you wanted to be at odds with. But in general, he wanted the best for everyone. He succeeded more or less, I think you must say.’

Morten