Lögberg-Heimskringla - 14.01.2005, Side 6

6 • Lögberg-Heimskringla • Friday 14 January 2005
When I
grow up
Evelyn K. Thorvaldson
WlNNIPEG, MB
My life in Lundar began in
1944 at the age of six. My par-
ents, Joe Ganton and Ingibjorg
(Ibbie Palsson) made the move
from Winnipeg in order to be
closer to family. My growing
up years there hold very special
memories.
Our first house was in the
south end of the town — it was
big, it was white and it had
a wonderful veranda. Amma
(Kristin Thorsteinsdóttir) and
Afi (Hjörtur Pálsson) lived in
the north end, just a comfort-
able walk away. My father was
a war amputee veteran in fail-
ing health. He and my afi died
in the same year, 1945. That is
when Amma’s house became
home for my mother, brother
Paul and me. With a multitude
of uncles and aunts, cousins
and friends, there was hardly a
dull moment in our lives.
AUTO PARTS LTD.
Full Line ofAutomotive Parts
Computerízed Wheel Alignment
National Guarantee
762-5321
Fir'st memories are the
lasting kind. New to the town,
I found myself faced with a
neighbour child asking, so
nicely, my name. I responded
by folding my arms, refusing
to answer. Great start! Eventu-
ally, we became good friends
and schoolmates.
I recall kindly one of my
favourite people of the past
whose name was Agust Eyolf-
son. He was busy cleaning out
culverts in the town, and I was
busy watching his every move.
I asked many, many questions
— “Why are you doing that?
What are you looking for? How
long are you going to be here?
Where do you live? How old
are you?” Poor, poor Agust.
He did get my attention,
however, when he said that
if I watched long enough and
closely while he was digging
deeper, that many Chinese peo-
ple would come out of the hole
— because he was planning
to dig all the way to China! I
watched, but Agust never dug
deep enough.
As a child, I had a great
love for older people, and still
do. They fascinated me. They
could tell the most wonderful
stories that would hold my in-
terest. I loved looking at their
faces and hands. I enjoyed help-
ing them with any mundane
chore. I was even allowed to
play cards with them. I helped
out with the Ladies Aid Bjork,
running errands — but mostly,
being a nuisance. Wherever
Amma was, I was there also.
My early days in school
PHOTO COURTESY OF EVELYN THORVALDSON
A folk dance group in Lundar. Evelyn K. Thorvaldson can be seen kneeling in the front.
hold good memories. I am still
in touch with classmates. Thel-
ma Sigurbjorg Einarson is one
of those people — a friend for
60 years! Pauline Johnson, a
Lundar lady, was my first grade
teacher. She gave many gen-
erations a great start. So loved
was she that friends and former
students established a town li-
brary in her name. The Pauline
Johnson Library sits proudly
on Main Street in Lundar, and
helps us remember one who
was so important in our lives.
Another teacher held
high in my respect was Vlasta
Matejka. She came to Lundar as
a young teacher, and I was for-
tunate to be in her class for third
grade. It was in her class that I
found myself in a bit of turmoil
one day. I don’t recall the actual
problem I caused (if any), but
I could have been a “tattletale”
on someone from the class to
the teacher. Pondering my pre-
dicament and the waming that
they were “going to get me af-
ter school,” I thought an invita-
tion to Vlasta for coffee at my
Amma’s after school would be
BUILD YOUR DREAM HOME
f^**3*si**
K ******
hwHovm
PflÖGKftM
v' ,T-"
;WAfl«AMTY "'íftbry. **;
MBHZWi
WBPHQC
204-762-5187
Tom and Judy Breckman
For Less!
And sooner than you think!
Live in the home you’ve been dreaming about,
You pick the iocation... You pick the plan.
We buiid to suit your every detaii...skíes the limit!
• on site custom ♦ pre-fab • iog
• modulized «post & beam • R.T.M.’s
Quaiity built homes made affordably. Your plans or ours!
www.masterbuiiders.ca • email: jude1@mts.net
in order. It worked beautifully.
There was no torture for me. I
was safe in the teacher’s hand.
However, when we arrived
at my Amma’s, she had guests
from Iceland that I had not been
aware of. It was as comfortable
as usual. Amma just brought
out another cup and saucer and
visited with my teacher as if it
were just a normal part of the
day. Vlasta eventually married
a Lundar-area gentleman by the
name of Paul Sigurdson.
Walking to school in Lun-
dar holds good memories of fa-
miliar people and houses. John
and Sigga Guttormson’s home
was always a “comfort zone”
for me. They were the clos-
est neighbours. Walking on,
I would see Sigridur Johnson
(a.k.a. Stjama) working and re-
pairing her house at a very old
age; Sigridur Jonasson looking
out her door and waving; drop-
ping by and delivering newly
made 'pönnukökur to Séra
Bragi from Amma; the sweet
delicious aroma of freshly
baked bread and those wonder-
ful honey-dipped doughnuts at
Olson’s Bakery; seeing Chum-
my Sigurdson busy working
away at his garage. What rich
memories — to name just a
few.
Skating and hockey were
a big part of the town for ev-
eryone. An outside rink pre-
sented the challenge of beat-
ing the cold weather. A hockey
shack was the shelter where we
geared up to skate. There was
never any fear of lacing up our
skates, as Wilmar Erickson was
always willing to help us out.
The town had many excellent
hockey players, young and se-
nior, who entertained with their
skills. We were a proud hockey
town!
The death of my father
brought some interruptions in
my life. Following a year in
Bremerton, Washington, for
fourth grade, we were back in
Lundar with Amma or at rela-
tives’ farms outside of town. At
times, our school was a coun-
try school, the Lundar School,
a Winnipeg School, school by
correspondence, and finally the
last school years were spent as a
boarder at a convent in St. Lau-
rent, just south of Lundar. How-
ever, I got to be the free spirit I
needed to be on the weekends
and summers at Amma’s.
I am still in touch with
the town in many ways. We
have a summer cottage (Husa-
brekka) on Lake Manitoba,
west of Lundar. There, I have
enjoyed 25 years of being close
to my roots. Some of the older
people are still around, and I
love them as much today as I
did when I was six years old.
Could it be that / am an
older person now? I am still
growing up! One never reaches
that point easily — perhaps one
day.
WELCOME TO LUNDAR
From Brandson Brothers
Fred & Arla Roy Sr.
Arlene, Laura & Tara Roy Jr.
Visit us on the web at http://www.lh-inc.ca