The Way We Met

1. Ellis Island Grand Hall-2

"Done?" I asked.

"Yes. Valkommen to America. Good luck."

I stood and gathered my satchel, quickly putting the paperwork she'd given me inside my jacket pocket and walked along towards the doorway at the end of the hallway. I saw the Swedish couple I'd seen earlier not far from being inspected, so I decided to stand and wait in the hallway for them to finish so I could talk to them. I wanted to know where they were going. If nothing else, I could have a talk with them and maybe, when we took the boat to the city, find a place to have coffee and rest. Perhaps we could become friends. I needed a friend amongst all these people and finding a fellow Swede was the easiest way to do it.

The sun came out from behind a cloud and sent a shaft of light through the open doorway of the Great Hall. I looked out to see the water splash up against the concrete footing of the passenger loading area. Once again, there were lines of people awaiting the next boat taking passengers to New York City and their new life.

I leaned back in the doorway and looked over to where the Swedish couple was still being inspected. They were definitely Laplanders now that I got a better look at them. They had the darkened features accompanying the peoples of northern Sweden. Humans had adapted to their environment of twenty-four hours of sunlight above the Arctic Circle, although I had never understood how a person could live in such a way. How would you know when to sleep? In the winter, they also had twenty-four hours of darkness for several weeks in a row. It was my one concern about where I was heading. I was accustomed to life near the sea, the hustle and bustle of a port, although I'd never seen anything like what they had in New York. There were so many more people, and I understood now why America had become a world power. They had better sea ports.

The couple was leaving now, carrying their suitcases, three in all, plus a small purse.

I walked up to them as they approached. "Du ar Svensk?"

"Ja," the man answered. "Och du ar Svensk?"

"Ja. Mitt namn ar Eric Larson," I said, reaching out my hand in greeting.

"English, Bror," she said in a harsh tone. "We are in America now."

"I'm sorry for my sister," the man said, reaching out to shake my hand. "My name is Bror ..." She gave him another glare and punched him in the arm. "Er ... My name is John Melin. This is my twin sister Amelia. She wants us to speak English now. Do you speak it?"

"Ja, a bit. It will be good to learn to speak it with you."

"Ja, we will make ourselves understood much even without her," John said, rolling his eyes at his sister's stiff ways. They were two of a pair, and I had not noticed until then how much alike they seemed. They both had long dark hair, very near to the darkest black you could find. They had long identical noses, yet where his face was full of angles and slender, hers was soft with a fuzz. I longed to reach out and touch it to see if it was as smooth as it looked. It was very much too bad she seemed such a grump. If she smiled, she would seem so much more beautiful than she was already.

"Do you mind if I keep company, is that how you say it, with you? I could use some friends," I said.

"It would be good to spent time with you, Mr. Larson," she said. "We all can practice our English." Her diction was almost perfect, and she made me suddenly feel self-conscious. She was slim and spectacular, yet her dress was one of the finest available in Sweden. They had wealth, it was sure, as her dress was high-collared as was the fashion with trimmings of satin in a light pink and a hat with a pheasant feather stuck in the band. It did not become her, as her hair was such a glorious black. I wondered what it would feel like to run my fingers through those black tresses. I swallowed a lump forming in my throat. Where had I gotten that thought? I sat back on the bench where we'd sat to wait for the next boat to come along. My mouth suddenly felt dry and parched.

"Please," I said, clearing my throat. "Call me Eric. We shall become good friends, I hope."

She held out her hand to me, sitting next to her and looked me in the eye. "We are pleased to meet you, Eric. Where are you from in Sweden?"

I took her small hand in mine and leaned down to kiss it. Her skin was so soft and warm. I'd never had such an instant feeling of devotion to a woman in my life, but I swear if she had asked me to lift a building, I would have. Her brilliant hazel eyes mesmerized me. I felt tongue-tied like a school-boy, though I was much older than the two of them. "Um, I'm from Floda."

She turned to her brother. "Do you know of such a place, Bror .. er, John? You used to help Uncle Oscar with bookkeeping for the factory."

"It is in the south, isn't it? Near the coast. A small village, if I am right," Bror said.

"Why do you keep forgetting his name?" I asked.

"Well, our proper Swedish names are Bror and Syster," she answered, "but we cannot go by such boring, simple names in America. We will go by John and Amelia here."

"Aaah, I see," I said, nodding my head. "I like Bror better. It tells what he is to you." I gazed into her eyes to see what she thought of this. Her eyes seemed like the windows to her soul.

Once again she turned to her brother. "Would you rather go by Bror? I don't want to force you."

"I would rather, yes, darling, to my friends. Please?"

"All right, to myself and Eric, Bror you shall be," she said. She reached out and gave him a peck on the cheek. They did have a sibling affection for one another, as they held hands, going together through the world.

I sat back and sighed. It did feel good not to feel so alone now. I had friends for the moment at least, but sadly no idea of where I would lay my head for the night. This was nothing new to me. I had gone many nights in Sweden without a roof over my head.

She leaned over and whispered in her brother's ear, and I could hear their musings in Swedish. She was concerned I may be a thief, so she was telling him to be wary of me. After a moment they stopped their chat, and she turned back to talk to me.

"Where are you going, Eric? What is your final, what was the word on the paper, Bror?" she asked.

"Destination," he said.

She finished her question. "Yes, what is your destination, Mr. ... er, Eric?"

"I am heading to Minnesota, to the city on the Lake Superior."

Her eyes grew wide with surprise. "We have heard of the place. It is much like Lapland, no?"

"Yes, I fear it is like Lapland. I don't know if I will want to stay there, but I can try. The conditions are much different than Floda" I looked over at the pair as they eyed me suspiciously now. "Floda is in the timberlands, and I have worked most recently as a tree man, for the ...is the word lumber?"

"Yes, lumber," she said.

"I am not a thief as you suppose. I will go there and see if I can find work as a lumberman there, where there are many trees."

Her head hung down low now. "I am sorry you overheard us. We are very nervous in this new place." She reached over and put her hand on mine, and a thrill rushed through me. "I'm sure you are not a thief now but a hard-working man, Eric. Why did you not bring your wife with you? Will you send for her later?"

"I don't have a wife. I have no family at all," I said, trying not to look them in the eye. "My mother died when I was small, and my father died in an accident on the docks in Gothenburg two years ago. I've been trying to find timberland work, but it has many slow now in Floda and I could not find anything. It has not been good in Sweden for me alone, so I saved my money to come here. It is said there is always work for a strong man here, a land of opportunity."

They were both very quiet after I'd finished talking. If they were supicious of me, and I had to wonder if our brief friendship was perhaps finished. "Where are you heading?" I asked.

"We're going to meet our mother in Jamestown, New York. It is near one of the other big lakes," she said.

"Meet your mother? Did I understand wrong? Do you not know her? How can you not know your mother?" I asked.

When I asked the question, three large youths came up to Bror and gave him a scathing look. They were much larger and older than he. One of them pushed at his shoulder, and his shoulder pushed back into his sister.

"We want what is owed us, Mr. Swede. You stole our money, Fancy Pants," one of the boys said. He accentuated his statement with a kick to Bror's shin. Bror bent down to grab at his leg and cried out in pain. If I did not do something quickly, this would become a fight out of control.

"What is this about?" I said, standing to my full height which was taller than any of these boys. I was a man who had done hard work, whereas these were school boys looking to fight. "Did you steal their money, Bror?" I asked.

"No, I won it from them playing cards. They are sad losers," Bror said.

I pushed against each young boy's shoulder, one after another. "Well, then these sad losers will need to go pestering someone else for their money," I said, pushing one finger into the chest of one boy. "Or they could get a job."

The boys scurried away, lingering glances at me their only defense. Amelia released a sigh she'd been holding. She took my hand and led me next to her to sit again.

"Thank you so much, Eric, for saving Bror from his foolishnesses. He likes to play with games and such, and it often gets him into troubles."

"It is not a worry. I am glad I was here to chase them away."

"Would you consider coming with us on our trip to see our mother? I am sure she will help us, and you, find work. Our uncle and grandmother have already started on the train trip. We are to go after them."

"We would gladly pay your way," Bror said.

"Bror!" She smacked him with her purse. "You should ask before you spend our money."

"But he can help protect you," Bror said. "I was not so worried before, but I am now."

"Where is this place?" I asked. "Are you sure I could find work where you are going?"

"Yes. Our mother has a husband and more children. He will help you find work there," she said. "We will need to find work to earn our way." She placed her hand on my upper arm and squeezed. "Please, Eric. We would be so happy to have you join us."

"I could be your protector?" I asked, grinning down at her lovely face.

"Yes, you can be our protector," she said, smiling and glancing between myself and Bror.

I grasped both of their hands, hers in my left hand and his in my right. "I will come along to Jamestown. On a train?"