Authors I Know

Authors I know.... most people will start naming the authors who have written books, that they have read. This time I will push that a step forward and talk about authors you actually know (acquainted with) in person. Surely I have had teachers and professors who have written our study books but it gets a bit more personal when it is about people's private experience.

Rejsen til frihed (translates to Journey to Freedom) by Linh Nguyen

I know Linh from my previous company and once in a while we are on the same bus to/from work. I knew, that she was one of the 3628 Vietnamese migrants rescued from the ship Truong Xuant back in 1976 but have never known any details. When I found out, that she published a book, it was immediately ordered.

The book is her and her family's story about escaping from Vietnam on a boat, being rescued by the Danish merchant ship Clara Mærsk, spending time in a refugee camp in Hong Kong and getting the news that Denmark would offer them a place to stay.

Along with Linh's words, the book is full of clippings from newspapers, a letter from the captain of Truong Xuant and other official letters.

There are lots of migrants by sea in the Mediterranean these years fleeing from Middle East and Africa so it is a topic that is still a hot political potato in a lot of countries. Often you "just" hear the news when you are living away from where the migration takes place, but in this case it becomes a little more personal when you have actually met a former migrant.

Stik by Stine Dige and Marie Ladefoged

Stine organized yarn bomb event last year and she has published a poetry book with Marie about fertility and reproduction. Apparently 1 out of 8 have problems with reproduction - you do not think much about that high  number until you stop and realize how many you know that might have received medical help to get babies.

I am not a mum nor will I be. A choice I have made partly (mostly) because of my MS - sometimes I think that it is not fair to those who are unable to give birth, on the other hand I made the decision with my heart as if I had a baby I want to be there when the child would need me - something I can not rely on a 100% with MS. Yes nobody knows what will happen with them, but I already know that I have a higher risk of disability because of the MS.

Especially one of the poems in the book made me think:

Let's Go Shopping

The writer mentions that she wishes to be one of those who hates children, has hobbies etc....

I just realized that some of my parents friends never had children, and my parents do not know why. They never asked if it was infertility or not wishing to be parents, and it is too late to ask know as they have both past away. One thing I do know: they were older (10-20 years) than my parents and treated me like I could have been their grand child offering to look after me if my parents had to attend parties etc. But wonder if they could sense that others were talking about them wondering why they never had children without asking them directly?

Maybe that is why I have chosen to be open about why I am not having kids?