Mången gladlig stundnjöto vi tillsammanoch i fröjd och gammanflög hvar snabb secund. Tiden aldrig hvilari sin snabba fart;ögonblicket ilaroch vi skiljas snart. Men i troget hjertauti fröjd och smärta fastän från dig skild,gömmer jag din bild (Many happy momentstogether we enjoyed,and in joy and happiness,the seconds quickly flew. Time never rests;in haste,the moment flies,and soon we part. But in my faithful heart,in joy and pain,though […]
IMG-7918 Sköna står hoppets rosor för dig, hvi söker du minnets? Hoppet och våren är slägt; minnet och hösten också. Dock om de gömmas till dess; bindas i förtid till krans Fläta min blomma då in, gif henne vänligt din vård. I will not try to translate the poem into English. My interpretation of the poem is that one should have hope when young and […]
IMG-7931 Two everlasting flowers blossom in the human mind One is friendship; the other memory May these two flowers remind you of your friend Charlotte! Who was Charlotte […]
IMG-7921 De loin comme de près toujours je t’aimerai Afar or near I always love you, Dear Marianne Who was Marianne who wrote that short, sweet poem in French? The handwriting is impeccable. She didn’t include a last name or a date. Of course, with such an uncommon name in Sweden in the 1840s, there would have been no need to include a last name. […]
IMG-7927 Bleibe Du auch von mir ferne, Immer froh von Herzen; Nimm mein Theil der Lust, und gerne Trag ich deins der Schmerzen! The poem is a stanza from a longer poem, Liebesfeier, written by Friedrich Rückert. Friedrich Rückert (1788-1866) was a German poet and translator who mastered over 30 languages. He is famous for his translations of oriental poetry. The stanza that Caroline copied […]
IMG-7932 Du reser hem, men jag blir kvar att sörja, och efter dig leta, dock likväl är det ljuvt att veta, att jag din vänskap ännu har. (You travel home, but I stay here to mourn, and for you look. Yet it is sweet for me to know, that still, I have your friendship.) Maria Charlotta Augusta Berlin’s family Maria Berlin was born on December […]
Louise Wener wrote the following poem for Cecilia in January of 1844. IMG-7924 Oh! vilken önskan skall jag i din vänskapsbok skriva? Se, med fem ord står den här: Väninna, var lycklig i ditt liv. Oh! what wish should I give you in your memory book? Look, it is here in five words: Friend! Have a happy life. Who was Louise Wener? […]
It was quite common for friends to sign a memory card with just initials, or to leave out a few letters in the name. This card was signed A….re W……dt on the 16th of June. I assume it was given to Cecilia in June 1844 when she was about to leave Stockholm. But who was A….re W……dt? IMG-7919 Among your friends I will write a […]
The start of summer vacation in 1844 was bittersweet for the girls in Edgren’s school. The school was closing, and decisions had to be made for the fall semester. The girls who had been boarding with the Edgren family, like our Augusta, had to look for new lodgings if they were to continue their schooling in Stockholm. Some girls would not come back in the […]
In 1840, at the age of 7, Josefine Stenbock was sent to Stockholm to live with Pastor Johan Fredrik Edgren and his wife Lovisa Dethmar and to attend their school. She lived with the Edgren family for four years (1840-1843). IMG-7937 Tack för hvar stund jag med dig delat, Tack för hvar dag jag haft med dig Om någon gång jag mot dig felat, Glöm […]