Lögberg-Heimskringla


Lögberg-Heimskringla - 05.12.2003, Qupperneq 2

Lögberg-Heimskringla - 05.12.2003, Qupperneq 2
page 2 « Lögberg-Heimskringla » 5 December 2003 Editorial • Ritstjórnargrein Lillian Vilborg Managing Editor WlNNIPEG, MB At this time of year we encounter figures of an otherworldly nature in our homes, public places, commer- cial establishments, on televi- sion. These entities contribute to the magic of the season. In northem climes, the magic is further heightened by the dark- ness that envelops us for greater and greater portions of the day. In North America it is Santa Claus, Mrs. Claus and Santa’s elves that we see every- where. And angels. In Iceland, Grýla, Leppalúði and their thir- teen sons, the Jólasveinar along with their * pet Jólakötturinn (the Christmas Cat), enter the lives of many. I love the “jolly old elf,” while ugly, srnelly, mean old Grýla is a bit more difficult for me to fathom. Both in Iceland and North America, angels are in evi- dence as decorations on trees, in windows, on doors, or out- lined in lights. The angels remind us of the love and light at this celebratory time. What amazes me is how often angels manifest all year round. For instance, this fall my cell phone fell off the roof of the car (yes, I had forgotten it there at a pit stop). It was pitch dark, no streetlights, a two-lane highway. We pulled off, put on the flashers and started looking for the black phone on the black pavement in the black night. A black truck, driving in the opposite direction, stopped to ask what we were up to. A few minutes later, the truck pulled up behind us and handed us the phone, did a u-tum and drove away. Almost before we could thank him, and certainly before we could see his face. I said to my companions, “That was an angel who came to our aid.” I have often had such angelic presences in my life. Last year in Iceland, my aunt, uncle, granddaughter and I were stranded at the side of the road with a flat tire. I called the car rental people - we had only had the car for a half hour! (I was hampered because I didn’t know the Icelandic word for flat tire.) I insisted they send someone out to help us. I had no sooner rnade that arrangement when two young men whipped up to us, sur- veyed the problem, changed the tire, and took off. Driving past, they had seen our plight, turned around and came back to help us. Angels they were. Angels have come to me in female form too. When I arrived at Ardrossan to catch the ferry to the Isle of Arran, it was a hike from the train sta- tion to the ferry and there was a wicked storm. Not a car or human soul on the streets. I was carrying two heavy bags, and had no clear idea where the ferry terminal was. As I was ploughing through the wind and rain, suddenly a young worqan approached me, asked where I was going, grabbed one of rny heavy bags, and marched ahead of me. Over the howling of the wind and rain, I could hear her stiletto heels clicking on the pavement. i felt I had to run to keep up to her. She left me at the door to the ferry ter- minal and disappeared. I can’t even remember thanking her. I’ve had angels tap me on the shoulder to let me know a car is going to crash into me if I don’t stop. They materialize out of nowhere and go back into the nothingness. They remind us of the goodness that exists in the world. At this time of giving, the best thing we can give is what those angels give, our time, our kindness and caring. The won- derful part is that we don’t have to wait for Christmas. There’s magic in the air all year round. We just have to welcome those angels into our lives. Letters to the Editor • Bréf til ritstjóra Dear Editor, I must confess that I am one of those “invisible” Icelanders who were the subject of your recent editorial. It was only three years ago that I went to my first Islendíngadagur at Gimli. But your article also brought to my mind that we are sometimes not as invisible as we might think, sirnply because we are such few needles hidden in the vastness of God’s haystack. About fifty years ago, while an undergraduate at the University of Manitoba, I was riding a bus down Sargent Avenue in Winnipeg. It was quite late and there were only three passengers on the bus, myself and a middle-aged cou- ple near the front who were heavily engaged in a domestic quarrel. They must have felt safe, as they were speaking Icelandic. I managed to control my amusement until I got off the bus, leaving them still hap- pily involved with each other. A few years later while I was working for Canadian National in Kitimat, a man came into the office one Sunday aftemoon, full of complaints. I soon realized he was also full of something else. I thought, how- ever, there was something First Lutheran Church Celebrating 125 years (1878-2003) 580 Victor Street Winnipeg R3G 1R2 ^ÉiIiSf 204-772-7444 www.mts.net/~nc&in Greetings from Gordon J. Reykdal SÍ ‘Tjkf~r )£ Honorary Consul of the Republic of Iceland 17703 - 103 Avenue Worship with us Sundays 10:30 a.m. Edmonton, Alberta Pastor Michael Kurtz T5S 1N8 ' .. Cöme Home! Tel: (780) 408-5118 Anniversary Weekend Fax: (780) 408-5122 October 17-19, 2003 E-mail: gord@rentcash.ca familiar about his accent, and interrupted his flow with the question “Ertu íslenskur?” He replied “Já” and continued on without a break — but now in Icelandic! It tumed out that he had been a fishing captain in Iceland, but at his wife’s insis- tence had given up the sea and moved to Canada. At first they went to Lunenburg where' he 1 retumed to fishing, but after a year or so they moved to Kitimat where he was working as a longshoreman. About twenty-five years ago I was travelling from Harare to Johannesburg and as we approached Jo’burg a pretty young wontan in the seat in front of rne began to chivy her two small children in prepaia- tion for landing. As on that Winnipeg bus, I had to smother a sntile for she was scolding them in Icelandic. From 1984 to 2000 I taught at the university in Bahrain in the Persian Gulf. On one occa- sion I had to call on the chaplain of the American Mission Hospital. It turned out that the chaplain was an Icelander who had been bom in Ethiopia where his parents were missionaries. He himself had returned to Iceland and Norway for theo- logical studies and was now in Bahrain. One evening about five or six years ago I was having my dinner in the restaurant on the compound where I lived when a young man came up to my table and began to speak to rne in Icelandic. It seemed that he and two colleagues from Iceland had a big contract to install some equipment in the aluminum smelter in Bahrain, and had been infomied by the staff at the restaurant that I was of Icelandic descent. For sever- al months we shared each other’s company, to the great benefit of my Icelandic. When I told my mother, who was then about ninety, in one of my occa- sional phone calls to her in Canada, that I was getting a chance to practice my Icelandic, her reply was simply, “I hear it.” It was my habit to try to speak a bit of Icelandic with her during our conversations as that was about the only chance I had to use my grandmother tongue. I am sure many of us invis- ible Icelanders are very grateful to you for keeping a light shin- ing on our heritage while we lurk in the shadows. All the best, Eggert Peterson Lögberg- Heimskringla Published Fridays, 44 times a year by: Lögberg-Heimskringla Incorporated 206-900 St. James Street Winnipeg, MB R3G3J7 Ph: 204-284-5686 Toll free: 1-866-LOGBERG (1-866-564-2374) Fax: 204-284-3870 E-mail: Advertising: logbergads@mts.net Submissions: logberg@mts.net Subscriptions: logbergadmin @ mts.net Website: www.logberg.com Office Hours: 1-5 pm. Mon-Fri. MANAGING EDITOR: Lillian Vilborg ASSISTANT EDITOR/ ADVERTISING OFFICER: Catherine Lambertsen McConnell ICELANDIC AND COPY EDITOR: Árný Hjaltadóttir LaYOUT: José Orellana BUSINESS MANAGER: Audrey Juve Kwasnica PRINTING: The Daily Graphic SUBSCRIPTIONS SUBSCRIPTION: 44 issues/year: Canada: $45 Canadian -Manitoba, add GST & PST: $51.30 -other provinces, add GST: $48.15 U.S.: $54 US or $81 CAD lceland: $54 US or $81 CAD -PAYABLE IN ADVANCE DONATIONS All donatlons to Lögberg-Heimskringla Inc. are tax-deductible under Canadian laws Charitable Reg. # 10337 3635 RR001 Business # 10337 3635 RT 0001 CORRESPONDENTS: • ALBERTA: Erla L. C. Anderson • NEW YORK, NEW ENGLAND: Thomas J. Martin • SASKATCHEWAN: Joan Eyolfson Cadham • TORONTO: Betty Jane Wylie BOARD OF DIRECTORS PRESIDENT: Julianna Bjornson VICE-PRESIDENT: Grant Stefanson SECRETARY: Elva Jónasson and Evelyn Thorvaldson TREASURER: Bill Perlmutter BOARD MEMBERS: Brian Tomasson, Ernest Stefanson, J.S. Laxdal, Kathe Olafson, Walter Sopher, Ragnar Bergman. Vi Bjarnason Hilton MEMBER-AT-LARGE: Jon Sig. Gudmundson, Kentucky REGIONAL REPRESENTATIVES: • BC: Norma Guttormsson • CALGARY: Margaret Grisdale • ÉDMONTON: Walter Sopher The L-H gratefully acknowledge the generous support of th Góvernment of Canada throuc Canadian Heritage’s PAP prograr <n& \b unn* mn mik mi m u nrmr HfirrRifrM m nm \ rin WHMHMh

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