An Interview with Atlanta Bar Past President and Author David N . Schaefer : Letters from Sweden
COMMUNITY
Many readers may be familiar with former President of the Atlanta Bar Association , David N . Schaeffer , and his mountain climbing adventures which have been recounted in past issues of this magazine and chronicled in his two previous books , Five Big Mountains and Another Five Big Mountains and Treks . David has now taken a 180 ° turn , writing of love and WWII in his new book , Letters from Sweden , released by Mercer University Press . This non-fiction historical romance , based on hundreds of authentic letters written over 75 years ago , explores how , with God ’ s help , a couple ’ s commitment , faith , trust , and constant communication through intimate handwritten letters can sustain and grow long-distance love across an ocean of separation .
1 . Your new release , Letters from Sweden , is a personal account of a different kind . You spent hours reading your father ’ s letters to your mother , which were sent to her in Greenville , South Carolina during his 18 months of postgraduate study in Sweden . You also researched the surrounding history to fill in some gaps in their story . What drove you to craft this book using your father ’ s letters ?
I learned so much about my parents , especially my father , by reading not only the hundreds of letters he wrote from Sweden , but also the many letters he sent to a friend in Washington , DC , during his military service . This second set of letters provided much previously unknown information about his involvement in the Battle of the Bulge and the allied invasion of Germany , his rehabilitation in Scotland following his war injury , and his shenanigans during the occupation in Germany .
I began the project by transcribing the letters from Sweden for my siblings , but quickly realized that my father ’ s war experience and my parents ’ love story , as told through these letters , would make an interesting and joyous book for a much broader audience .
2 . Handwritten letters , slipped into envelopes , stamped , and mailed , grow rarer by the day . In an age of instant text messaging and the ability to phone anyone anywhere in the world , what is the lasting value of letters written by hand ?
When I sign copies of Letters from Sweden , I tell the readers to “ never underestimate the power of handwritten letters .” My book is dedicated to the power of unconditional love , unwavering trust , and “ good old-fashioned handwritten letter writing .” Handwritten letters are simply more personal than any digital messaging . They can be held and read over and over , while texts and emails get lost in the shuffle , and then they are gone . Without these handwritten letters , the complete details of my parents ’ love story and their unwavering trust during their lengthy separation could never have been told . The letters drive the story from start to finish and , in my opinion , are priceless .
3 . How did these letters affect your perspective of your parents ?
The letters gave me a much more personal understanding of my parents ’ history , their personalities , and the similarities between their experiences and my own . I learned more about them through these letters than I knew in my 65 years of living before my mother died at age 95 . Unfortunately , the letters were not discovered
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