# Claes Jonasson :: Writer

> words to make a difference

Language: en
URL: https://claesjonasson.com/

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## Pages

- [Thank you](https://claesjonasson.com/thank-you/): One more thing Awesome You have successfully updated your email preferences
- [Carensa Holt](https://claesjonasson.com/carensaholt/): Too young for the Summer of Love … not radical enough for protest riots. Caught in a decade of turbulence, Carensa Holt looked for something to hang on to, trying to find herself. A novel by Claes Jonasson Carensa Holt
- [Carensa Holt – the hotel](https://claesjonasson.com/carensa-holt-the-hotel/): The hotel Carensa was thrilled to be in Paris.  With the youth hostels all far out in the suburbs, she found herself in a small hotel on the Left Bank. It was one of those 1 star hotels that put
- [Carensa Holt – conversation on a train from Narvik to Copenhagen](https://claesjonasson.com/carensa-holt-conversation-on-a-train-from-narvik-to-copenhagen/): Conversation on a train from Narvik to Copenhagen Leaving Narvik, the compartment had been full. She at first expected that the other five people were also going to Copenhagen, or at least a good deal of the way, maybe down
- [Carensa Holt – morning on a train](https://claesjonasson.com/carensa-holt-morning-on-a-train/): Morning on a train Long shadows and harsh sunlight that promised a hot day ruled the suburbs the train sped through. Once again it was morning on a train. While the big city of Paris woke to a new day,
- [One more thing](https://claesjonasson.com/one-more-thing/): One more thing I just sent you an email with a link to click to confirm your subscription to my email newsletter. Please click that link right now and you'll be set. Looking forward to keeping in touch. Great things
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- [Login Designer](https://claesjonasson.com/login-designer/): This page is used by Login Designer to preview the login form in the Customizer.
- [Contact me](https://claesjonasson.com/contact/): Contact me Claes Jonasson Writer, Creative, Copywriter, Designer My home base is Central Arkansas, USA
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- [page title](https://claesjonasson.com/page-title/): soem contem
- [Thank you for contacting us](https://claesjonasson.com/got-it/): Thank you for contacting us Got your message and will get you an answer as quickly as we can. In most cases, that's the same day. (Unless your message came at an odd time when we were sleeping — time
- [Insights and thoughts about life, faith, stuff](https://claesjonasson.com/email/): Insights and thoughts about life, faith, stuff Delivered to your inbox — making a difference in your life Sign up now to make sure you get it all: Regular email updates - latest blog posts and other content Tips, tricks
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- [Download your guide here](https://claesjonasson.com/download/): Download your guide here
- [Welcome](https://claesjonasson.com/): Life, faith, stuff LIFE. Each of our lives is a hero’s journey. We may not feel like it a lot of the time. Sometimes we forget what the quest is about. But we’re here, on Earth, on this journey. FAITH. We are
- [About me](https://claesjonasson.com/about-me/): “It’s a dangerous business, Frodo, going out your door. You step onto the road, and if you don’t keep your feet, there’s no knowing where you might be swept off to.” Fellowship of the Ring by J.R.R. Tolkien About me Hi,
- [Blog](https://claesjonasson.com/blog/)
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- [Thanks](https://claesjonasson.com/thanks/): Thank you for giving your input. I very much appreciate it.
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- [Success](https://claesjonasson.com/success/): Thank you for contacting us Got your message and will get you an answer as quickly as we can. In most cases, that's the same day. (Unless your message came at an odd time when we were sleeping — time
- [life](https://claesjonasson.com/life/): Making Sense, Sorting It Out, Living a manifesto for life We’re on this journey called life and get to figure it out as we go along. Looking at Life, Faith, Stuff and how they interact in the crossroads of life.
- [That “someday” train trip you’ve been talking about?](https://claesjonasson.com/rail-adventure-download/): Make it become reality with this free planning guide.Give me the ebook
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## Blog Posts

- [2 must-see classic French films](https://claesjonasson.com/2-must-see-classic-french-films/) (2023-05-19): A story about first love, so sweet and tender — and so fragile. And a story about transporting a very special car from Paris to Amsterdam.

What could go wrong?
- [The tale of the green apple](https://claesjonasson.com/the-tale-of-the-green-apple/) (2023-04-06): Once upon a time there was a garden in which stood an apple tree of the most imposing kind. Full of green, but still tiny fruits destined to become big, red, juicy apples in a few months.
- [Of daffodils and tanks](https://claesjonasson.com/of-daffodils-and-tanks/) (2023-02-23): Daffodils in the depth of winter: Will they stand against ice, wind and rain? A country overtaken by an invasion: Can it endure? Lessons amidst frailty.
- [Your new trip around the sun](https://claesjonasson.com/your-new-trip-around-the-sun/) (2023-01-25): A few days into the new year, a friend greeted me this way: "I hope you enjoyed these first days of your new trip around the sun." — Say what?
- [Weekend goodbye](https://claesjonasson.com/weekend-goodbye/) (2022-11-06): Mark was on a train heading home after seeing his friend Sabrina over a weekend. A pleasant visit.

The last moments at the train station kept lingering in his mind.
- [Finding Rivendell](https://claesjonasson.com/finding-rivendell/) (2022-10-24): Rivendell is a magical place in J.R.R. Tolkien’s writing. Couldn’t possibly exist in real life. Or does it? Turns out it does and I went there. Without knowing at the time.
- [2 book series that will expand your world](https://claesjonasson.com/2-book-series-that-will-expand-your-world/) (2022-05-12): A book series focuses on a longer story arc or common characters. It's an opportunity to go on a longer journey and discover the story and its world more deeply.
- [Going nuclear is back on the table](https://claesjonasson.com/nuclear-attack-is-back-on-the-table/) (2022-04-20): For a long time, nuclear attacks were expected in any war in Europe. It was part of the fear we lived with. 

And now the nuclear attack option seems to be back on the table.
- [About a backpack](https://claesjonasson.com/about-a-backpack/) (2021-09-28): When I was going train hiking in the summer of 1975, I purchased a new external frame backpack. 

I had no idea it would still be with me on travels all these many years later.
- [The old man with the bicycle](https://claesjonasson.com/the-old-man-with-the-bicycle/) (2021-07-20): Youth hostel. Old man choosing to stay there among all those 'kids'. I’m glad he did, because I learned great travel lessons that have served me well in the decades since.
- [All that snow…](https://claesjonasson.com/all-that-snow/) (2021-02-22): Winter x 3. I’ve lived through winters in Sweden and Iowa. With cold and lots of snow. But it’s in Arkansas we've just emerged from 10 days of being stuck in snow. Even so, I love winter. And snow.
- [Between 2 countries, finding a place to belong](https://claesjonasson.com/between-2-countries-finding-a-place-to-belong/) (2021-02-12): What could a story about a woman moving from Ireland to Brooklyn in the 1950s have in common with me moving from Sweden to Iowa in the 1970s? Actually quite a bit more than I thought just from watching the movie trailer.
- [Shaping the story of your next year](https://claesjonasson.com/shaping-the-story-of-your-next-year/) (2021-01-15): New Year. Resolutions made and then broken. We set goals and hope. Here’s a roadmap to shape your story in the next 12 months. With the end solidly in mind.
- [From the Statue of Liberty to London’s Wembley, via Seattle](https://claesjonasson.com/from-the-statue-of-liberty-to-londons-wembley-via-seattle/) (2020-10-23): Man and woman meet, connect, fall in love. One small hitch — they’re both engaged to others. Star-crossed lovers? Or is there a way to be together after all? We have a story!
- [The dream job](https://claesjonasson.com/the-dream-job/) (2020-09-29): I landed my dream job as a video and film producer with a growing production company, located in a medieval castle, complete with a moat. Perfect, right?

So why did I leave after just a few months?
- [Celebrating labor](https://claesjonasson.com/celebrating-labor/) (2020-09-03): Labor Day is about celebrating workers. Because if nobody worked, we wouldn’t eat, have anywhere to live or much of anything else. Labor makes life possible.
- [Inside out and topsy-turvy](https://claesjonasson.com/inside-out-and-topsy-turvy/) (2020-07-16): Life suddenly became totally different, overwhelming. How do we cope? Move forward? To change or not to change and if so, what?
- [Independence Day](https://claesjonasson.com/independence-day/) (2020-06-29): “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”
- [Movies for a long, hot summer](https://claesjonasson.com/movies-for-a-long-hot-summer/) (2020-06-24): Corruption and crime at the top. • Can we change society? • Peaceful protest, angry violence. • Bringing back great industrial jobs. • Friends forever, for a lifetime. • What if a camera could open up a new world?
- [Words, meaning, feeling, poetry](https://claesjonasson.com/words-meaning-feeling-poetry/) (2020-06-15): I sat at a well-worn table in what used to be a store, now turned into a cultural center of sorts. Listening to a poetry reading. I don’t even remember when I was at a live poetry reading before that.
- [Train 232 from Copenhagen](https://claesjonasson.com/train-232-from-copenhagen/) (2020-06-12): Darkening images fly past,
outside the softly vibrating glass.


There’s a draft from the window.
Bags stowed everywhere.
- [The comet](https://claesjonasson.com/the-comet/) (2020-06-12): Black lands with black images,
skies of all absorbing velvet
- [Poem](https://claesjonasson.com/poem/) (2020-06-12): Words in pictures
Pictures of words
Impressions captured in a moment
- [Meeting again and then…](https://claesjonasson.com/meeting-again-and-then/) (2020-06-02): Michael was looking forward to being back in the metropolis where he once lived. Stepping off the train there, he’d meet Jody. It'd been ages. And the last time had gone spectacularly badly.
- [The effect of Coronavirus on Man-in-the-Moon Marigolds](https://claesjonasson.com/the-effect-of-coronavirus-on-man-in-the-moon-marigolds/) (2020-05-21): The coronavirus has affected everything, making life feel like a downward spiral. Like being stuck in a totally dysfunctional family, with no way out. Or is there one? A future after this pandemic?
- [Facing our giants](https://claesjonasson.com/facing-our-giants/) (2020-05-05): A lot of things in life don’t get done. They’re big. Scary. Complicated. And we don’t know how or where to get started. So we don’t face our giants. It’s safer that way. Except we miss out on so much…
- [There’s no place like home](https://claesjonasson.com/home-theres-no-place-like-it/) (2020-04-28): Home. We live there. Leave and come back. But what does ‘home’ really mean? And what makes something or someplace ‘home’?
- [Morning sickness and the Coronavirus](https://claesjonasson.com/morning-sickness-and-the-coronavirus/) (2020-04-16): When there’s a problem in life, we want to find a solution. That’s natural. Part of what makes us human.

The quicker, the better. But what if there's a price…
- [Potter is not selling — he’s buying](https://claesjonasson.com/potter-is-not-selling-hes-buying/) (2020-03-26): The Bailey Building & Loan. Crammed with investors who want their money. Now. Because it’s a run on the bank. George Bailey trying to calm them down.

What does that have to do with the Coronavirus?
- [The little red-haired girl and the magical island](https://claesjonasson.com/little-red-haired-girl-and-magical-island/) (2020-03-16): A harbor, cranes, warehouses, industries. Now Peter was back here, to repair a ship unloader. 

Across the shipping channel was an island. And memories of a magical summer long ago.
- [I wanted to build a house](https://claesjonasson.com/i-wanted-to-build-a-house/) (2020-03-04): Growing up, I wanted to build a house. Not just the requisite tree house or small play shed. But a real house to live in. 

I have no idea where the idea came from.
- [Snow geese and sun dogs](https://claesjonasson.com/snow-geese-and-sun-dogs/) (2020-02-19): Usually driving from Little Rock to Memphis is rather mundane. Not so this day. Fields covered in white birds. 3 suns in the sky. Was it an omen?
- [A cemetery in Paris](https://claesjonasson.com/a-cemetery-in-paris/) (2020-02-11): Carensa would so have liked to catch up with Veronica one more time. Maybe then she would have been able to break through and make some difference in her life.
- [On the wrong train](https://claesjonasson.com/on-the-wrong-train/) (2020-02-04): The long high speed train was at the platform. I found a perfect seat. Then doubt set in. Was it really going where I wanted to go? I started to think I was on the wrong train. That was about to leave.
- [The one with interpretation](https://claesjonasson.com/the-one-with-interpretation/) (2020-01-29): Every word we say, every action we take — they’re observed by others around us. 

Then interpreted for meaning. But be careful …
- [Movies in mid-winter](https://claesjonasson.com/movies-in-mid-winter/) (2020-01-21): Blink and be totally lost in this financial shell game. When life falls apart, is there a 2nd act? Faced with a great wrong, what can one person do? A journey out of this world. Mind over matter is just a saying, or?
- [Carpe annum](https://claesjonasson.com/carpe-annum/) (2020-01-14): January. We’re still getting used to the idea of a new year. But the days are getting longer. A whole year ahead. Time to dream about things that can happen this year. Maybe a fresh start.
- [’tis the day before Christmas…](https://claesjonasson.com/tis-the-day-before-christmas/) (2019-12-24): What does Christmas Eve (and Christmas Day) mean to you? Hurrying? Scurrying?

But what if there were no Christmas? Ever!
- [A train commute and an umbrella](https://claesjonasson.com/a-train-commute-and-an-umbrella/) (2019-12-17): It rained that morning. Not a soft, raindrop by raindrop, rain. But rather a windy, more sideways than vertical, rain. For Martin, this day of commuting would be unlike all the other days. All because of an umbrella.
- [We’re all immigrants](https://claesjonasson.com/were-all-immigrants/) (2019-12-11): We’re born. Somewhere. A geographic location. Then we move. Sometimes across a border. We become immigrants.
- [Goodbye East Berlin](https://claesjonasson.com/goodbye-east-berlin/) (2019-12-05): November 9, 1989. The images I never thought I’d see: People, lots of them, by and on top of the infamous Berlin Wall. Whole sections of it coming down. It was a miracle unfolding before our eyes.
- [Giving thanks — not just for one day of the year](https://claesjonasson.com/giving-thanks-not-just-for-one-day-of-the-year/) (2019-11-27): Thanksgiving Day is a huge holiday in the US. But gratitude and saying “Thanks” isn’t limited to only that day.
- [The greatest threat: External or internal?](https://claesjonasson.com/the-greatest-threat/) (2019-10-30): It’s far less likely that some foreign terrorist is going to come blow up my house or business than that I will do something myself to derail and mess it up.
- [The power line](https://claesjonasson.com/the-power-line/) (2019-10-23): It was a dark and stormy night. Thunderclaps aplenty. Then another, really loud noise. Much closer. That couldn't be good!
- [Of pinpricks and a Milky Way](https://claesjonasson.com/of-pinpricks-and-a-milky-way/) (2019-10-09): How often do you stop and look up at the sky at night? Quite possibly not that often. Because we tend to be in a hurry to get home. It’s dark. And there’s nothing to see up there anyway. Except there is …
- [Then I saw your face](https://claesjonasson.com/then-i-saw-your-face/) (2019-10-02): The long distance train sped through miles of suburbs surrounding downtown. Greg was going back to the city to meet a woman he once knew. The last time blew up spectacularly. What would today be like when they meet again?
- [Everything was better before — and the more before the better](https://claesjonasson.com/everything-was-better-before/) (2019-09-24): “The good old days.” “I miss the old days.” “Life was simpler then.”

We look/think/dream back a few decades and see a time in the rearview mirror when the world was in ever so much better shape.
- [It’s been good — time to end this](https://claesjonasson.com/its-been-good-time-to-end-this/) (2019-09-12): Scenario: You have a conference that is doing well. 

Would you end it because this is year 5 and the plan was to only do it 5 times? Or keep going, because you can?
- [Day’s end](https://claesjonasson.com/days-end/) (2019-09-03): The long cattle drive had been like countless others. The trail comprised seemingly endless miles of sun scorched prairie. Days went by and the horizon was still only a line, without any signs of civilization.
- [I wasn’t there — dealing with death and dying](https://claesjonasson.com/i-wasnt-there-dealing-with-death-and-dying/) (2019-08-21): A person is dying. Family gathered around for that last, meaningful goodbye. 

Except that's not always how it happens. We may not be there. Then what?