The journey continued this week with a fairly uneventful week in Sysslebäck. Had a few different jobs during the week, but nothing too great to report on. Certainly clocking a few miles up and down the valley in the cars though, so my manual skills are fine now. The valley is special to drive up when the sun is going down and the reflection off the river is lovely. As always, nature reminding me of its beauty no matter where I am!

Training unfortunately wasn’t as intense as previous weeks had been, but nonetheless, the work was put in, and no matter the session, I always make sure to focus on a certain area and accomplish something during the sessions. Game day rolled around and I was disappointingly left out of the starting 11. It was a little bit of a surprise, but the recent results showed that something had to change. That is all part of football, and even if you or others don’t believe that you should be on the bench, it is part of it and you have to deal with it, be a team player and contribute when you get a chance. It was a tough game to watch from the bench as we lost 2-1. Games are now becoming very crucial as we need to establish a bit of space above relegation again. I did get 90 minutes for the reserve team on Sunday in a resounding win, and a clean sheet.

Over the weekend, I also had a visitor, Fred Hagen. Unofficially my Uncle from Pennsylvania. He has many ties to Norway and Sweden through his family heritage, and so he made sure that on his trip this year he got up to see me. We had a great time catching up, and I loved hearing the stories he has to share. He has so  many stories that are very interesting and are too funny not to tell. On Sunday morning we headed up the valley a few kilometers and turned off up a gravel road to a walking path along a river. It led to a quite spectacular waterfall, Digerfallet. We spent time exploring the surrounds of the falls, as well as the old power station house that used to be used to generate power from a stream near the falls. We then climbed above the falls to see the view and followed the river up further. It was a great adventure and was quite stunning. Nature can be so powerful and ruthless, all the while being beautiful and peaceful. It was just wonderful to be out in the forrest enjoying nature with a friend! After the reserve game on Sunday, Fred headed back to Oslo where he will spend more time before returning to the USA.