Happy Sunday! 🌸🇳🇴

There are some days on the calendar that carry a little extra weight in your heart: and for me, May 17th is one of those days.

You may know it as Syttende Mai — Norway's Constitution Day, their version of a national celebration of independence. But in our home, it has always meant something even more personal than that.

My husband is half Norwegian, and his mother, my dear mother-in-law, was full-blooded Norwegian through and through. And as if the universe had a sense of poetry about it, her birthday fell on the very same day. May 17th belonged to her in the most beautiful way.

Years ago, my husband and I had the privilege of living in Norway for two years. During our time there, his parents flew in to visit us, and what a visit it was. We took them on a cruise down Norway's longest fjord, surrounded by some of the most breathtaking scenery I have ever laid eyes on. But the memory that stays with me most tenderly is Syttende Mai itself.

We brought her to Oslo, to the castle, where we stood together and watched the royal family appear on the balcony, the streets below filled with parades and music and joy and color. Norwegian flags everywhere. Children and adults alike dressed in their beautiful cultural regalia, the traditional bunad, Norway's stunning national costume, worn with such pride and joy. The whole country celebrating... and right there in the middle of it all, we were celebrating HER. Her birthday. Her heritage. Her life.

She is gone now, my sweet mother-in-law. And in one of those moments that life sometimes gives you that is equal parts heartbreaking and achingly beautiful, we laid her to rest on May 17th. On her birthday. On Syttende Mai. The day that had always been so fully and completely hers somehow became the day we said goodbye to her as well. I have never quite known what to do with that, except to hold it gently and feel grateful that even in loss, the day still belonged to her.

I think that is what romance really is, at its core. Not just the grand gestures or the sweeping declarations, but the quiet moments of showing someone that they matter. That their history matters. That YOU see them.

Happy Syttende Mai, and Happy Sunday to each of you. I hope your day is filled with something - or someone - that makes you feel seen. 💛🌸

Love,

Anna B.