Jämtland is #whereicomefrom

TEDxÖstersund began with a "poetry slam" reading by Martin Johansson.
Here are the words to his poem, called "Jämtland is #whereicomefrom.

JÄMTLAND IS WHERE I COME FROM:

Where I come from people take care of each other

Where I come from people are friendly

Where I come from people are shovelling snow off their neighbours driveways

Where I come from people can´t understand the kindness that neighbours show

Where I come from the storefronts in county towns are empty

Where I come from people build bowling alleys and sport arenas instead.

Where I come from the trees speak louder than the people

Where I come from people understand each other anyway

Where I come from people are starting to hate more and more

Where I come from people who are starting to hate more and more frightens me

Where I come from people in the countryside gather to make cabarets

Where I come from people gather in groups just to enjoy each other’s company

Where I come from people make good cheese

Where I come from people like to eat good cheese

Where I come from. Where I.

JÄMTLAND IS WHERE I:

Where I am born

Where I live

Where I lost myself

Where I re-invented myself

Where I wanted to leave as soon as quickly at the age of twenty

Where I now want to inspire people in the twenties not to vanish for good.

Where I work with culture on the countryside

Where I don´t have to work full time in order to survive

Where I don´t have to move myself in rush hours

Where I walk to my office every day.

Where I think something big is about to happen

Where I am longing when I´m abroad

Where I have met so many people that think like me

Where I can pet a moose.

Where I. Where.

JÄMTLAND IS WHERE:

Where you no longer see the virgin forests

Where the woods are devastated by forestry machinery

Where the rivers create electricity in abound

Where the money from the power plants lands somewhere else

Where people skates on ice in a winter park.

Where the ice breaks earlier and earlier

Where developers want to build new slopes where the eagles build their nests

Where people with love to animals stop those plans

Where politician says: it is fun when something happens here.

Where the bluish ice is slowly singing

Where the national newspapers writes strange columns about us

Where the people here reacts on strange columns written about us.

Where the colours have more clarity than anywhere else

Where you get time to live.

Jämtland is where it is closer to your dreams.

Jämtland is where I come from

Lyrics and performance: Martin Johansson
With inspiration from: Annika Norlin, Yvonne Flodin, Björn Barr, Ann-Sofie Andersson, Jenny Sandström, Ida Norlén, Emma Arnesson and Pernilla Axerup.

Music by: Klabbes bank.
Song: ”Jämtland”
Composer: Klas-Henrik Hörngren

Photo: Johannes Poignant/ TEDxÖstersund

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