Jönköping audience expectations and response

The audience expectations and conversations before the lecture at Allianskyrka:

Terese, Amelia, Marianne were chatting together as I approached them with my questions about the morning. I found out that this type of breakfast event happens a few times a year. It's an ongoing event, just like the one in Karlstad, except this breakfast is for everyone and not just the women.

This was the first visit to the church for all three ladies. On what they expected, Terese said she wanted to hear a little bit about Jenny and her life as an artist. Amelia had read Jenny's book and thought it was very good. She thought the book was interesting, so she also thought listening to her speak would be interesting as well.
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I spoke with Monika and her daughter Maria a few minutes later. They were also both guests at the church. Monika saw an ad in the paper and asked her daughter if she would like to come along.

I asked them what they think of the city. If they were asked to describe it to other people, what would they say? Maria said the city is a nice place with a lot of water surrounding it. She likes the proximity to bigger cities like Gothenburg and Stockholm. Monika said the nature and nearby woods are her favorite part of living there.

I asked them what they knew prior to today and Monika explained that she has read Jenny's book, which was given to her by her son. She was fascinated by the book, so she thought going to the event was a good idea. She didn't know anything about Jenny prior to reading the book. Maria hasn't read the book but she knew Jenny was in Ace of Base. That is all she knew prior to the presentation. Maria thought it would be interesting to hear, so she decided to take her Mom up on the invitation.
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I met four ladies by the names of Hannah, Lisa, Marie, and Lisa. They were sitting in a corner table by the window. I sat down and asked them a little bit about the city and the church.

The ladies are not official members of the church but they attend services there. Lisa described the church as a good blend of ages. She has been going for about a year and said it's an easy-going place. She thought it was easy to get to know others in the congregation.

The group came to a consensus about the town of Jönköping. They said it was a very nice city with a lot of cafes and churches. It's a student city and also a very international city with people from all over the world living there.

Hannah said she had heard about the morning's even through earlier Sunday services and through the congregation newsletter.

All four also knew Jenny was a part of Ace of Base and had heard she has a strong faith.

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Reactions:

I thought the discussions after the lecture were so interesting, I decided not to edit them down into summary paragraphs. Instead, I've translated and transcribed them so you can "listen in" on the conversations:

Annete, Lisa and Mikael were sitting beside us during the presentation. Just after the speech was over, I turned to them and asked what they thought.

It was a strong presentation. She's been through a lot, yet she still has both feet on the ground.

It's a life story that doesn't directly correlate to your own, so it's interesting to hear how things were from the inside.

When you think about how well-known she is in the world, and to see how she's just standing here in our little church, and how she has a message that is completely different than this luxurious lifestyle. She is so normal, seems so simple. The presentation was simple, strong and real.

It's interesting to hear her reflect on her own life within the situations she has found herself in. That she's noticed a change in herself, that she did things in a different way, like how she acted with her friends after she came back from a trip and things like that. It was quite interesting. You can connect those things back to your own life, I think.

The grass isn't always greener on your neighbor's lawn. You should try to take care of the grass you have at home.

Also, how we can take care of things in our own lives? We can reflect over our own lives.

It's surely not an easy thing to do when you're living in different places and taking a tour on the red carpet. There are other things that grab your attention.

It's good not to forget what you have.

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Madeline, Gun-Marie, Gunilla, and Ingared were sitting at a back table together and seemed to be in a deep conversation already before I joined them. They happily answered my questions and below is the result of their discussion:

I knew she is very well-known and I thought the presentation sounded like an interesting thing. There was a note about the breakfast in the monthly letter at the church, that she was going to talk a little bit about her life. And the presentation was totally fantastic.

It was very good.

There were so many strong stories she told. The whole thing was memorable. Her simplicity was memorable. She's so well-known, yet she still has this simplicity about her. This little person trusts and focuses on God through everything she's been a part of and that's completely wonderful. The whole time she has trusted God even though the ground was giving way around her.

I think the whole presentation was good. When she was a kid, how she searched for God, and during the confirmation camp and the church's youth program - how that peace is so strong. She found the direction even though it was chaotic and she decided she would stay on that path. She found a bit of peace in this chaotic life.

And how she has trusted God the entire time, even though things were teetering on the edge for her. She's been through very difficult things while she experienced all this glamor and fame. You don't see a backside when you see a well-known artist or celebrity. It doesn't look like there's a backside or you can't think there is one, but there are backsides.

You don't think about the backside of fame when you sit there and watch something on TV or a concert. You don't think about the background.

Te entire presentation was good. She talked about being part of two worlds - in the church and the everyday life. I think it's important to have that, to have both. To know that you can give the message in both places. That you can live in both worlds. I think that's very important.

Yes, I agree with that because I am like that. I can go out to a concert or, for example, I was with friends having a dinner and drinks yesterday and today I can be in the church. You don't have to direct your life towards just one thing. That's not what it's about, but it's about what's on the inside. And she talked about this green grass, about being happy for what you have. I think that's important. There are many people today who look at the other side of the fence. It's not greener, I think. It's not really more green. And maybe it takes a little time to realize that. And she has realized that since she's been on the red carpet and it's not better. But you may not realize that during the first few years.

Also how she's held fast to her faith the entire time. It could happen that with all this fame, you lose your faith or your ground that you've had from the start. But she hasn't lost it and it's great. She's had such a trust in God, a need for God. She has felt that she can't manage without God. She has made it through and even though it seems she could have everything in the world, that need is still there.

There's also the story of this little cross, this gold cross. It was unusual.

Yes, it was.

Yes, that she went through with it. That she took off the cross and gave it to the man. I don't think I could have done it.

Me neither. (Laughter all around)

That she listened and was so convinced about it. There are so many situations she talked about where she was so convinced that it was God's hand.

Her mom, she survived, right? She said four percent survive. Is she still alive?

(Yes)

Fantastic!

Yes, that's great.

I was sitting there wondering when she was going to talk about when her Mom died, then later on it was a wonderful surprise to find out she's still alive.

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Birgit, Gerd, Yvonne, and Gunvar were the last people I spoke with. As I approached, they cleared a place for me at the table and motioned to me to take a seat as if I were an old friend, even though they had never seen me until that moment.

I thought it was an interesting story to hear. And to get the story of her entire life told in under an hour is incredible.

It's a very gripping story. You could really feel what she's been through. She's such an excellent speaker. There aren't many people who can speak in such a riveting way.

(At this point, a gentleman helping to clear the tables overheard the conversation and chimed in. He agreed with the analysis and said the speech was moving.)

Is she still a part of the group? She didn't really mention whether she was in the group or not.

(I explained the current situation and we continued our conversation.)

There's so much you remember from what she said.

Yes. A lot.

But the most memorable story was about the cross.

Yes, exactly.

Gripping in a way. It followed her and the circle came back around to its close when she got the cross back. I thought that was fantastic.

Exactly. I also thought to myself, what could I give up that meant a lot to me? Would I be able to give it to someone else?

She was willing to obey.

She did run another lap, of course. (Everyone around the table breaks into laughter)

She certainly hoped he wasn't still sitting there when she returned. But she decided she would leave it with him if he was still sitting there when she got back.

It's also a tough world she experienced with Ace of Base. I can imagine there are a lot of drugs and alcohol and everything possible, so to be in that and think in a different way, take a different track is fantastic.

That she still held onto her faith.

Yes, that she held onto it. It's surely always been there, but she can also be a part of these two worlds. It's good.

She said that the pillars in our lives are our parents and I thought it rings so true with those of us who have lost people who are near and dear to us. It's exactly how she describes it. The rug is pulled out from under you in some way. You become half of what you were, without legs for awhile.

I agree with that. And how she could find this joy even when she wasn't sure her Mom would survive. To find that joy in the midst of tragedy. I thought it was incredible. And the song she sang, where she said "listen to the words" - she was forced to say that because she's such an incredible singer that you would otherwise focus on how well she sings instead of focusing on the words. And to hear how this was a fantastic comfort she found in these words and how the words brought joy into tragedy. It was fascinating to hear.

I liked the part where she talked about the grass not being greener on the other side. Instead live where you are now and be thankful for everything around you and your meetings with people.

It's not better on the other side.

The last part she said, that it is a little greener on the other side but watch out that the grass you're standing on doesn't fade. I am a person who is never happy with things. I always want a little more, but she made me think about not neglecting where I am so it doesn't turn into just weeds or destroy the things you have. You can focus on both at the same time a little bit but not so much. I also thought that was something to think about.