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Valborg: The Fire That Renews Everything
Valborg in Sweden is more than a bonfire—it’s a ritual of renewal. In this episode, I explore its origins, meaning, and how fire marks the end of winter and the return of life. A reflection on culture, change, and human need for new beginnings.
Follow the podcast on other platforms:
YouTube: @spanswede
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/spanswede
Podcast in Spanish:
Apple Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/se/podcast/spanswede-en-espa%C3%B1ol/id1869977014
Spotify Podcast: https://open.spotify.com/show/3vVzU7x9YNUspFcSTdt4SB
Acast Podcast in Spanish: https://feeds.acast.com/public/shows/spanswede-en-espaol
#Valborg #Sweden #Traditions #Spring #Culture #NordicLife #Reflection #Fire #SpanSwede #Podcast
This podcast shares personal reflections on life in Sweden, culture, philosophy, and much more.
Also in Spanish: feeds.acast.com/public/shows/spanswede-en-espaol
YouTube: youtube.com/@spanswede
Follow me:
Instagram: @spanswede
TikTok: @spanswede
If this podcast adds something to your day, you can support it at ko-fi.com/juansweden — you'll also find the free bilingual transcripts for each episode there.
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More episodes
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13. Midsommar
09:08||Season 2, Ep. 13It's June 19th and Stockholm is celebrating Midsommar. Literally, Midsommar means "mid-summer." I feel like it's actually the beginning of summer, not the middle. Midsommar is a holiday with pagan roots, a wooden pole loaded with flowers, dances more than a thousand years old, and that sun that still refuses to set at eleven at night. I share how I experienced it and along the way try to explain why a celebration that looks like child's play is actually something very human.#Midsommar #Sweden #Stockholm #Skansen #Summer #SwedishCulture #ExpatLife #SpanSwede #EnglishPodcast
12. The Fakir
10:56||Season 2, Ep. 12Some books you read, and some books read you. The Fakir, a novel based on the life of yoga master Ramiro Calle, was both for me. It was also the first book in my life that genuinely moved me. In this episode I'm not going to summarise it or analyse it. I want to tell you why that text reached a place in me that almost nothing had reached before, and which teachings from its pages I keep coming back to — for anyone trying to walk with dignity across the tightrope of their own life.#TheFakir #RamiroCalle #Yoga #Philosophy #Stoicism #InnerLife #Consciousness #SpanSwede #Podcast
11. Slavery in Sweden: the past nobody talks about
09:43||Season 2, Ep. 11When we think of Sweden, we think of human rights, equality, and social progress. And that's real. But there's a chapter of Swedish history that very few people know about: for almost two hundred years, Sweden was a slave-trading nation that trafficked human beings, ran a Caribbean colony with its own slavery code, and compensated the slaveholders — not the slaves — when it finally abolished the institution. In this episode, I talk about that past. Without judging through the eyes of the present, but without looking the other way either.📖 Free bilingual transcript (English/Swedish) available as EPUB — read along or use it to learn Swedish:https://ko-fi.com/s/2903c99da0#Sweden #Slavery #History #SpanSwede #EnglishPodcast #SaintBarthélemy #Reflection #Colonialism
10. 10 Things Sweden Changed in Me
09:09||Season 2, Ep. 10When you've spent more than a decade living in a country that isn't yours, something curious happens: you start noticing changes in yourself that you never consciously chose. Habits you adopted without realising it. Words that only come to you in Swedish. A relationship with silence, with nature, and with the seasons that you simply didn't have before. In this episode I talk about how Sweden has changed me — for better and for worse — in ways I never expected.#Sweden #Immigration #Change #Habits #LifeInSweden #SpanSwede #Podcast #Reflection
8. Modern Work: Between Detachment and Dehumanization
07:07||Season 2, Ep. 8In this episode, I reflect on how people feel about their jobs today.I talk about something that is becoming increasingly visible: toxic work environments, companies that are more results-driven than ever, and employees who feel disconnected from their work. A growing sense of detachment that is hard to ignore.On one side, companies have evolved into more efficient systems—but also more impersonal ones, where people are treated as “assets.” On the other side, especially after the pandemic, many individuals have started questioning the meaning of work, the balance between life and career, and the stability they once took for granted.This episode explores that silent tension between companies and employees, the speed of change, and the difficulty of building a stable life in such an uncertain environment.It’s also a personal reflection on something deeper: how we often look for identity, purpose, and security in work—and why that can lead to frustration.Maybe the answer is not to change the system entirely, but to change how we position ourselves within it.Follow the podcast on other platforms:YouTube: @spanswedeInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/spanswedePodcast in English:Apple Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/se/podcast/spanswede/id1740094241Spotify Podcast: https://open.spotify.com/show/37CXiQV9JQ5Edq2nsXFrxwAcast Podcast: https://feeds.acast.com/public/shows/spanswedePodcast in Spanish:Apple Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/se/podcast/spanswede-en-espa%C3%B1ol/id1869977014Spotify Podcast: https://open.spotify.com/show/3vVzU7x9YNUspFcSTdt4SBAcast Podcast in Spanish: https://feeds.acast.com/public/shows/spanswede-en-espaol
7. Who Speaks for Earth?
04:38||Season 2, Ep. 7In this episode, I reflect on one of the most powerful chapters of Carl Sagan’s Cosmos: “Who Speaks for Earth?”.Written in the early 1980s during the Cold War, Sagan’s words feel just as relevant today. He describes the enormous destructive power humanity has developed through nuclear weapons, and the terrifying consequences of a global conflict.Beyond the numbers, this episode explores something deeper: our collective responsibility as a species, the dangers of unchecked power, and the absence of a true voice that represents humanity as a whole.Who makes decisions for the planet? Who speaks for all of us?This is not just a reflection on the past—it’s a question about our present, and our future.#CarlSagan #Cosmos #Reflection #ColdWar #NuclearWeapons #Humanity #Future #Awareness #SpanSwede #Podcast
6. The Ethical Use of Artificial Intelligence
04:46||Season 2, Ep. 6In this episode, I reflect on the ethical use of artificial intelligence in everyday life.I talk about how I use AI as a tool to optimize tasks, learn faster, and improve workflows—but also about the risks of relying too much on it, especially in creative processes. Where is the line between using AI as support and losing part of your own voice?I also share thoughts on the future impact of AI, the lack of regulation, and how, like with previous technologies, we may be moving faster than we truly understand its consequences.In the end, it comes down to one thing: it’s not the tool—it’s how we use it.Follow the podcast on other platforms:YouTube: @spanswedeInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/spanswedePodcast in English:Apple Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/se/podcast/spanswede/id1740094241Spotify Podcast: https://open.spotify.com/show/37CXiQV9JQ5Edq2nsXFrxwAcast Podcast: https://feeds.acast.com/public/shows/spanswedePodcast in Spanish:Apple Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/se/podcast/spanswede-en-espa%C3%B1ol/id1869977014Spotify Podcast: https://open.spotify.com/show/3vVzU7x9YNUspFcSTdt4SBAcast Podcast in Spanish: https://feeds.acast.com/public/shows/spanswede-en-espaol#ArtificialIntelligence #AI #Ethics #Technology #Reflection #Creativity #Future #SpanSwede #Podcast
5. Finding Clarity in the Darkness
04:36||Season 2, Ep. 5Recorded in the middle of the night, alone in a dark forest somewhere near Stockholm, this episode is a raw and personal reflection on time, distraction, and the search for clarity in a world that never slows down.After returning to full-time work, I started to feel how little time we truly have for ourselves. Not because time disappears—but because it gets taken, fragmented, and consumed by constant demands and distractions.In this episode, I reflect on the speed of modern life, the role of technology and AI, the pressure of work, and the growing difficulty of keeping our minds in order. Inspired by thoughts from Seneca and Carl Sagan, I explore how we’ve built a world full of information and noise, yet struggle to find stillness and meaning.Sometimes, it’s in the quietest and darkest places where we finally see things more clearly.Follow the podcast on other platforms:YouTube: @spanswedeInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/spanswedePodcast in English:Apple Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/se/podcast/spanswede/id1740094241Spotify Podcast: https://open.spotify.com/show/37CXiQV9JQ5Edq2nsXFrxwAcast Podcast: https://feeds.acast.com/public/shows/spanswedePodcast in Spanish:Apple Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/se/podcast/spanswede-en-espa%C3%B1ol/id1869977014Spotify Podcast: https://open.spotify.com/show/3vVzU7x9YNUspFcSTdt4SBAcast Podcast in Spanish: https://feeds.acast.com/public/shows/spanswede-en-espaol#Clarity #Mindfulness #ModernLife #Distractions #Stoicism #CarlSagan #MentalHealth #Reflection #SpanSwede #Podcast