After my mom wrapped up her month-long artist residency in Finland, we decided to make a trip out of it.
I met her and my aunt Sandy, in Helsinki, Finland before we traveled around Norway via their scenic railway.
My mom and aunt really wanted to take this trip, as their maternal grandparents (my great grandparents) immigrated to the U.S. from Finland and their paternal grandparents came from Norway. My mom and aunt remember the Finnish and Norwegian traditions their grandparents brought over to the U.S. and practiced until they died.
Hilma (and her husband Matt) continued speaking Finnish throughout her life and never admitted that she understood English. Their Norwegian grandma, Gena (and her husband Alfred) did speak English, and her main way of sharing her culture was by baking traditional cookies and dishes.
While I never met Hilma, Matt, Gena, or Alfred, I did think it was incredibly special to be in the homelands of my ancestors and thought of my grandparents, Lily and Leonard, often.
The Jo Show 