When the Cranes Fly South

At 7:45 AM, Bo is in a low mood and asks Ingrid to record that he has nothing to say.

Bo flips through a local magazine that Ingrid left and finds a center spread about a 10-year-old boy who claims that he saw the Storsjö Beast. He uses a magnifying glass to read; the boy said that he visits the shore on weekends and sometimes sees marks that the Beast leaves behind. The story triggers a memory of Ture, who once insisted that it exists. Ture used to point at ripples in the lake as signs of the creature. Bo thinks of how he would teasingly ask Ture whether he had seen “any monsters” (207). 

Not wanting to dwell on Ture, Bo snaps the magazine shut. He grips it with both hands and tries to tear it in half, but the paper is too thick and his fingers too stiff. He tosses it toward the floor; it catches on a chair and hangs there awkwardly.

At 1:10 PM, Kalle writes that Bo is in a better mood after a visit from a priest.

A priest visits Bo. Bo recalls proposing to Fredrika and admitting that he does not believe in religion but respects people who do. After a few minutes’ deliberation, she said yes anyway. The priest says that she saw Fredrika at Brunkullagården and offers her sympathy that Bo must watch her go through that change; Bo is hesitant to share his real pain with her. 

They sit with coffee and chocolate. She asks how long they have been married: 62 years this year, Bo replies, picturing Fredrika in her sister’s wedding dress. The priest sets a red-flowered plant on the table and talks quietly about time and the end that comes for everyone. Bo has felt as though time is accelerating in recent weeks. Bo thinks of Sixten’s new life and of Hans calling since Ture’s death. He cannot stay angry, yet he “can’t forget” the dog being taken (211). He considers telling the priest about Ture and Sixten but stays silent and lets the chocolate melt on his tongue.

Kalle arrives after the priest leaves. He notices the plant, and Bo says that the priest was there. Kalle warms a meal, pours milk, and mentions that his grandfather used to go to church with Fredrika and that he sometimes tagged along. As the microwave pings, he laughs about the old woman by the bay who baked jam cookies. Bo grins, knowing the exact woman he means.

Hans arrives to take Bo to Ture’s funeral. Bo has been dressed and waiting in the kitchen for half an hour, cane in hand, but his legs shake when he tries to stand. Angry at his body, he thinks he wants to “carry Ture’s memory” (215). Hans knocks softly and greets him. Bo points to a small badge on the bedside table and asks for help. It is the Storsjö Beast pin. Hans studies it and agrees that it feels right. Hans opens the clasp and pins it to Bo’s jacket, the one Fredrika helped him buy after his father died. Bo notices sadness in Hans’s eyes and remembers that Ture mattered to his son too. Hans hooks his arm through Bo’s arm, and they walk out to the car together.

At 10:15 AM, Hans writes that he is taking Bo to Ture’s funeral and then to the wake in the church hall.

Hans drives Bo slowly toward the church for Ture’s funeral. He praises the beauty of the day, as mist hangs over Storsjön and Bydalsfjällen. Bo watches the church tower and imagines Ture in his coffin. He recalls how Ture’s “quirks” often made others uncomfortable (217), which is why they spent time alone at the cabin. 

They turn down the now-smooth road to the church. Bo remembers sneaking Christmas trees there with Hans and Ture. He remembers visiting his father’s grave with his mother on All Saints’ Day. His thoughts drift to his father’s funeral and the awkward phone call weeks before, when his father invited him to dinner and asked for “help with the hound” (219). Bo declined and later felt fake while standing by the coffin as the priest spoke. He did not believe that his father deserved to be remembered so fondly.

Back in the present, they pass the memorial grove where a plaque will read “Ture Lindman.” Bo thinks of their chess games in the park. He tells Hans that he does not want a headstone but then reconsiders, saying that he and Fredrika will have one together. Hans follows a taxi into the empty lot, cuts the engine, and turns to Bo with a nod that reminds him of Fredrika. They enter.

Bo wants to “see properly” (221), so Hans helps him to the front pew. The priest sits by the lectern. A photo of young Ture leans against the coffin. Organ music plays, and Hans hands Bo a “plump and blood red” rose (221), just as Bo wanted it. Bo imagines that the next funeral will be Fredrika’s; he is “ready to be done” with everything now (221). 

The priest delivers a eulogy that echoes what Bo told her, mentioning studies in Gothenburg and a life beyond Hissmofors. Bo notes a few mourners from the mill and Ture’s building, as well as Malin from home help. He thinks of what might be said at Fredrika’s future service. During the music, tears come; Hans rests a hand on Bo’s leg, and Bo places his hand over it.

A well-dressed stranger sits in the back with a black hat and an envelope labeled “Ture.” After the service, he lays the envelope on the coffin. Hans approaches him. The man says that his name is Eskil and that he and Ture “were acquaintances in Gothenburg” (224). He declines getting coffee because he must catch a plane. He leaves; Bo is slightly saddened by the idea that there are “things Ture chose not to tell [him]” (225). He wonders whether there was anything that Fredrika may never have told him or whether Hans might have such secrets.

At the church hall, Bo and Hans share coffee and mazariner with the priest. Sivert and Nisse stop by to talk about summer and dogs. For a moment, Bo realizes that he has not thought about Sixten all day. He thinks about Eskil; Ture’s romantic life always felt “too private” to ask about (226), but now he regrets that there were parts of Ture that he did not know. Growing drowsy, he agrees when Hans says it is time to go. Bo waits by the door while Hans brings the car.

At 8:10 AM, Johanna writes that Bo seems “increasingly tired” (229).

Bo wakes shivering, spots a dry open sandwich on the bedside table, and realizes that he needs to urinate but is too exhausted to reach the toilet. He feels his crotch and discovers that the carers have put him in a diaper. He urinates and is flooded with shame after the brief relief. He wonders if Fredrika still feels shame in similar moments or if she is beyond it. Reaching for the jar with her scarf, he fumbles with the lid “in vain” (230), fails to open it, and lets it drop onto the mattress beside him.

At 12:20 PM, Ingrid cooks for Bo and chats with him.

Bo dozes and wakes again to Fredrika’s presence in memory and scent, reflecting that her scent is always the first thing he wakes up to. The scarf touches his cheek; he breathes it in, closes his eyes, and drifts back to sleep.

Ingrid sits by Bo’s bed reading. He is cold and thirsty; she moistens his lips and offers a strawberry drink, talking about autumn leaves. Bo drifts in and out of consciousness, seeing Fredrika, his parents, and Sixten. His breathing tightens; Ingrid reassures him that everything will be okay soon. He feels a “kind of uncomfortable sensation” (234). Since the funeral, he has grown more determined that he does not want to leave anything unsaid. A new temp, Sofia, arrives. Ingrid and Sofia change Bo’s diaper and settle him; he calms and begins to fall asleep in spite of a “familiar tugging sensation in [his] chest” (236).

Ingrid asks Sofia to call the priest. Bo, Ingrid, and the temp share a brief laugh. Ellinor and Hans arrive with coffee and almond tarts. Ellinor tells Bo that she loves him, and they chat with Hans about her studies. The priest returns; Ingrid brings water and suggests ice cream. The priest covers Bo’s feet with a blanket. Ingrid places Fredrika’s scarf against his cheek; Bo breathes in and rests while Ingrid opens the window to the autumn air. 

Bo thinks about his mother’s death and the words he did not say to her, to thank her for being better than his father. He admits that he did not tell Fredrika how much her death truly affected him. He senses that he is about to die and remembers his father’s death and how it motivated him to be a better person. In spite of this, he is still sad. He feels like he knows Hans better than his father ever knew him.

Hans keeps vigil, with his hand to Bo’s forehead. Bo wakes and whispers that he is proud of his son, as is his mother. Hans kisses him. Sixten jumps onto the bed and rests his head on Bo’s stomach. Hans asks if things will be all right; Ingrid assures him that Bo is going to be okay. With Hans’s hand on his shoulder and Ingrid guiding his hand to Sixten’s back, Bo drifts off. He senses Sixten running in the meadow and, as the window opens, hears the cranes gathering to fly south.

At 3:30 AM, Bo dies quietly in his sleep. Ingrid notes how peaceful he seemed, with one hand on Sixten. She lit a candle and called Hans.