Writer & Translator
Once upon a time I used to write a lot of poetry. My first published book in Sweden was a collection of poetry, followed by another two collections. But that was a long time ago. However, these last few years I've been fiddling with words here and there, and lately I've been trying to gather up the… Continue reading New poetry – ‘Grandmother’
My grandparents’ house sits on top of a hill. Like so many other Swedish houses it is painted red with white trim. Just below the house, in a grassy field where wild strawberries and nettles grow in summer, is the stable. It is an old, sagging wooden building, also painted red. Looking down at the… Continue reading My grandfather’s horses
And then one day you look at your kid and they stand there, and their legs are so long, but all you can remember right at that moment are dimpled cheeks, and dimpled arms, and the soft soles of the feet, and the legs kicking, and the arms reaching without coordination, and the eyes shiny… Continue reading And then one day…
Sports Day last year at my son's school. It was a really good day. Sunshine, blue sky, green grass, lots of goofy events for the kids, samosas and hot dogs, candy and soft drinks. My son was 8, in grade 2. My daughter was 4. I hung out on the sidelines with her to cheer… Continue reading Are your kids winning?
I have two kids. One never stops talking, and that's the way it's been since she was about a year old. She wakes up every day with stories to tell, and she spends the whole day telling those stories, barely stopping long enough to fall asleep. The other child didn't really say much at all… Continue reading Listen
There's a house one street over from ours that I always take note of when I walk by. It's one of those small houses, single floor rectangle, painted light blue. When we first moved into our house almost six years ago, a little old lady lived there. She was small and bent with white hair… Continue reading Ode to a little old lady
I'm sitting at the pool while my son has his swimming lesson. It's the Specialty Splash, a special swim class for kids with special needs. The kids in the group have a variety of special needs. For example, there's a boy with autism, a girl with Down's Syndrome, there's my guy with his various needs… Continue reading Special people
Maria Haskins 