December 1st in Owen Sound (Ontario, Canada) and we have, this morning, seen the first light snow that remains on the ground. It is a fine sight (not too much snow) to help us get in the spirit for the winter and Christmas season.

This year was the first in 14 years that I did not produce an edition of  “Sanoma Maukonen.” Simply, there was not enough content (pictures and news) to place on a sheet of paper. Please visit the links on this page for other Maukonen sites and content.

As ever, I invite Maukonens (and those of Maukonen heritage) to post comments here telling us about your activities and news.

Wishing you all a wonderful Advent season and Christmas celebration,
Bret Maukonen

Bret & Lynne Maukonen (Owen Sound, ON, Canada) spent 6 weeks in Guelph, Ontario and the returned to their house in Owen Sound to spend the winter in that area. Bret has begun work with Frank Street Baptist Church (Wiarton; 30km north of Owen Sound) as Interim Pastor. He had served there in 2006-2007 in a similar capacity and then, again, this summer delivering sermons on Sundays. Lynne works from her home office as a coach, counsellor and career consultant.
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We invite other Maukonens to post comments or send news of their activites.

If you are of Maukonen heritage, you may post a comment with information about your activities or news.

Joshua Maukonen (son of Terry and Linda; brother of Nicholas) was married to Jessica Barkey on Saturday, August 29 in Orillia, Ontario. Our congratulations to the couple and their families!

This month the Maukonen Family Society reunion in going to take place (August 8 – 9) at Törmälä (www.tormala.fi) in Rautalampi (www.rautalampi.fi). It has been three years since the Society had its last reunion.

We wish the Maukonens gathering there a wonderful time together!

Canada Day on July 1 and the Americans celebrate the “Declaration of Independence” on July 4 — what attracted some of our grandparents / great grandparents to come to North America? The Maukonen presence here is only two or three generations in the making.

For people living outside of Finland, you can monitor Finnish news by visiting the English-language site of YLE at http://www.yle.fi/uutiset/news.

In recent months, there has been more activity to gather pictures and stories about the Maukonens in Canada. Carloyn and Jackie (neé Maukonen; of Neil & Georgina) Azar have been initiating this work.

If anyone of Maukonen heritage has news (e.g., celebrations, moves, activities) to share with other Maukonens, please post a comment here.

MAUKONEN FAMILY SOCIETY REUNION – 2009

The Maukonen Family Society reunion in going to take place on August 8 – 9, 2009 at Törmälä (www.tormala.fi) in Rautalampi (www.rautalampi.fi). It has been three years since the Society had its last reunion which was held in Jyväskylä.

An important bit of news is that the Society is going to launch its own website (www.maukoset.fi). The launch date is planned for just before the meeting in August.

At the reunion, people can have a nice time together and also can visit Hanhiniemi, the farm yard that still belongs to Jouko Maukonen (www.hanhiniemi.com).

From information provided by Annariikka Ahlnäs,
Secretary – Maukosen sukuseura

I was sent an article about Finnish temperament by my cousin Cathy (a cousin on my mother’s Ukranian side). Cathy’s mother (my Aunt Irene) was of Finnish descent.

This article is from Psychology Today, Jan./Feb. 2007 and published online at http://www.psychologytoday.com/articles/pto-20070116-000004.html

Omissa oloissaan – No Need for Words
Finnish people are defined by silence. Is that healthy?

Merete Mazzarella, a professor of Nordic literature at the University of Helsinki, tells a joke: How do you know if the Finn on the elevator with you is outgoing? When he’s looking at your shoes instead of at his own.

The key to the Finnish character is quietude. Finns rarely enter into conversation with strangers; words are chosen carefully; small talk is considered suspect. Instead Finns revere “sacred silence” and hold that keeping quiet is healthy and promotes thoughtfulness. In his book Cultures in Conversation, author Donal Carbaugh quotes a young Finn who admits, “I never realized that people in other cultures might regard the word ’shy’ as a negative word… ‘Ujo’ or ’shy’ in Finnish has a neutral or positive meaning.”

Sisu, meaning “guts, grit, determination,” is another valued hallmark of the Finnish character. Finland is no place for complainers, and long, dark Arctic winters have shaped some of the hardiest—and most stoic—human beings on Earth.

Yet Finns are reserved even by Nordic standards. From the Middle Ages until the 20th century, the country was occupied by Sweden and Russia, and the native Finns had great incentive to avoid trouble. Living next door to the Soviet Union during the Cold War provided further impetus to keep their mouths shut. But Finns have steadfastly maintained their identity, evidenced by the phrase, “Swedes no more; never Russians; let us be Finns.”

“In Swedish they say ‘great’ all the time,” says Liisa Keltikangas-Järvinen, a psychologist at the University of Helsinki. “In Finnish we don’t say that things are great. We just don’t. Things are OK or maybe good.”

Some researchers view the trademark Finnish reticence as more pathological, linking it to depression and emotional repression and citing Finns’ high rates of suicide, alcoholism, and high blood pressure. In 2004, a theater director named Turo Herala made big news in Helsinki when he began offering anger-venting classes—a true novelty. “Anger in Finland is a bigger taboo than sex,” Herala explained to a reporter.

Laughing out loud isn’t common either. Children are taught early on to resist their impulses. Bragging about personal accomplishments is the worst thing a Finn can do. “If you can’t control yourself, you are regarded as immature,” explains Keltikangas-Järvinen.

Given the right situation, though, Finns can become excited and voluble. In the familiar environment of the sauna—there’s one for every two Finns—they sometimes become embarrassingly open and candid.

And things are changing; the technical revolution has kicked the shy Finn out of the closet. They are among the most wired—and wireless—people in the world; 95 percent own a cell phone. In the remote summer cottage, the modern Finn still finds his sacred silence, but nowadays he mixes the Internet with this primitive escape.