My hips packed up he said. I’m waiting for an operation. But it’s good to see you again jana. Then he asked if I was staying or just back in the village to say hello.

Drop in and see nora one day. She’s been missing you. By the way I don’t shoot a cow with calf either. Maybe I don’t go on about it like you do.

Noragran or nicenora as she was known was gunnargran’s wife. Their son roger and I had been in the same class at school. We often went to his house after school. Nicenora was a housewife. She liked hugging people. Every day when the school taxi stopped at their yard and we jumped out she was there on the veranda to welcome us. Roger would slide out of her arms but I stayed for as long as I could. Nicenora always wore a flowery housecoat. She smelled of dovesoap and home baking.

Coffeeandcake was waiting for us. Nora wanted to hear about our schoolday. If it had been an easy day perhaps with funny things 187to tell her about she laughed with us. If something had troubled us her face grew worried. When really bad things happened to people we told her nothing at all.

I’ll think about what to do I said. If I’m staying or not. Bror had better come home first. He’s being treated in this rehab place in pite I told him. Gunnargran only nodded. Nothing escaped the watchful village. Everyone knew everything. That explanations were mostly unnecessary was both alarming and reassuring.

That’s good he said. Good that you mind your brother. He has had a lot on his plate.

Gunnargran was the oldest in this crew. Like all the rest of them he had known father.

And so had you. I know that well enough. He was a hard man our erik.

We had all gathered around the elk cow by then. Andersström handed me a pair of thin plastic gloves. Here you are he said. You do the field dressing.

It felt as if I were being tested. I knew what to do and had done it many times but that was long ago by now. Worse the elk had been shot near the belly. One mistake with the knife and the stomach contents would drain into the chest cavity and ruin the meat. I glanced at gunnargran. He nodded encouragingly at me.