The Feast of Joy in Sweden

No less than eleven families from Rugutė were touched by the warmth and light of The Feast of Joy that took place on the 28^th of September in Sweden. We thank Mr. Bengt Nilsson for the miracle – the trip to Sweden that ignited smiles on our beloved ones‘ faces.

 

A few years ago the Lithuanian Embassy in Sweden introduced Rugutė to Mr. Bengt Nilsson, whose family, having gone through their daughter Anna’s fight with leukaemia, holds The Feast of Joy every two years in their homestead in Southern Sweden. The idea of this feast budded in 1993, when, wishing to cheer up his very ill baby daughter, Anna, Bengt Nilsson invited children from the same hospital department and their families to spend time at his homestead. Soon the feast became a tradition for the children, parents, hospital staff and sponsors from oncological hospitals of Southern Sweden and other parts of the country.

 

The year that the warm friendship with Rugutė budded, Mr. Bengt Nilsson invited Lithuanian children with oncological diseases and their parents to The Feast of Joy as well.

 

On a dreary morning of 28^th of September a group of Rugutė members met at Vilnius Airport by the sign To the Feast of Joy. Kristianstad. While some of them wore smiles with anticipation of the feast, the others were having butterflies about the first time getting on an airplane...

 

A charter flight to Kristianstad and back… Friendly pilots, the pilot’s cabin being made available to satisfy children’s (and their parent’s!) curiosity, and smiling stewardess, Marie, who shared goodies and made sure the flight was the most pleasant time spent above white clouds... Laughter, children’s giggles and parents’ smiles never ceased.

 

Perhaps it was the cheerful mode of Rugutė members that scattered all the clouds above Sweden. The Sun kept shining in the autumn sky since our airplane landed in Sweden.

 

Feastive surprises started as soon as we landed in the tiny airport of Kristianstad. Remigijus Motuzas, the Ambassador of Lithuania who had come from Stockholm on purpose, welcomed the Lithuanian team with a musical ice-cream van that treated all of the children to most delicious ice cream and feathered Swedish Indians waved their hands, making the children’s smiles even wider.

 

The Indians, having saddled up the fast horses (that were in fact motorcycles) along with policemen (moving around even faster than horses, but still being able to wave to children) safely delivered Rugutė team to the location of the feast. There we had to jump into another lovely transport – wagons being pulled by tractors. In these wagons, sitting on bunches of hay, we watched a funny performance about life on a farm, about a cow that was rescued from fire and about defeated enemies. The only participants that missed the performance were our very little ones who had at last fallen asleep in warm arms after the impressive airplane and bus trips.

 

After the performance and the ride by unusual transport (together with a few hundred of participants from Sweden), we were invited to a huge table of treats. Then we hurried away to the real motorcycles and sport cars that were available to everyone daring to try them out. Careful and professional drivers ensured our safety. The racecourse seemed inviting not only to the children, but to their parents as well.

 

The handsome football players from the Swedish Football Selection Team invited everyone who liked to play football to the field. Was it a rare chance to play football with professional players, or was it their glaring smiles that had caught Ligita‘s, Jekaterina‘s and Simona‘s attention for a good while?!

 

As artists, perched near the racecourses and football field, painted flowers, butterflies and other color images on our faces, we were invited to visit Fire Station, Police and Ambulance cars. The Ambulance car, full of softest toys, attracted children the most – isn‘t it a miracle to get out of such car with arms full of new toys?!

 

Having looked at everything, having tried all the racecourses and kicked the ball, we headed towards the stage where one more performance along with cheerful Swedish (the language was no longer a barrier) songs was about to begin. We had so much fun that we began to form dancing circles, jump around and embrace each other, enjoying such a beautiful and sunny feast.

 

We could have danced forever, but the organizers invited us to the table again, this time for a huge and delicious cake. As soon as we learned that Mr. Bengt Nilsson‘s birthday was soon, we all stood up and sang Ilgiausių metų.

 

At the end of the feast our beloved priest, Rimas, who had come to Sweden along with us, spoke a holy speech, and our galiorka girls entertained the participants by singing Šypsenėlė, the song of The Island of Friends.

 

Smiles didn’t leave our faces through all the flight back to Lithuania – even though we were tired after the long day, nobody fell asleep on the plane. Everyone wanted to share impressions, to take a look at the autographs that sportsmen had signed on the real footballs that were given to the children, to hug the new backpacks that many of the children probably would bring to school the next day, and to taste all the candy that was hidden inside of those backpacks.

 

 

Charity and Support Fund Rugutė says a special word of Thanks to Mr. Bengt Nilsson and his family for inviting us to take part in this incredible feast, for organizing the unforgettable flight for the children and for the opportunity to see the most sincere smiles in our little Fighters’ faces.

 

We thank Remigijus Motuzas, the Ambassador of Lithuania in Sweden, and Nerilė Marcinkevičienė, the Chief of the Office of the Embassy, for coming to the feast and for being together with the little Great Fighters from Lithuania.

For being with us on the most important moments for the Fund, we thank our beloved Priest Rimas Venskus.

Sincere thanks to Eglė Dilkienė, the Director Executive of Lithuanian Hotel and Restaurant Association, and to Hotels of Lithuania – Reval Lietuva, Mikotel, Žemaitė, Grybo namai – for the cozy nights our beloved ones spent in Vilnius.