Árdís - 01.01.1966, Blaðsíða 56

54
ÁRDÍ S
Then, at last, at long last, they landed in this land of promise.
It can well be imagined just how inviting the future looked as
they travelled on their destination on dirty trains, and flatboats,
and how the unfamiliar countryside looked when seen through
a cloud of mosquitoes and black flies, heat and oft times driving
rain. It must have been very difficult for the mothers, in parti-
cular, to keep up a cheerful mien in face of all these trials. But
remain cheerful and calm they did, the majority of these brave
women. And more hardships awaited them, smallpox, scurvy,
grasshoppers, prairie fires, lonesomeness, lack of work, poor ac-
commodations, not forgetting lack of adequate food. Was this the
utopia they had travelled so far to find? Had they bettered them-
selves? Would they really fare better here than they would have
at home? The language was strange, the country so flat and dif-
ferent, the winters so bitterly cold and long, the summers so
searingly hot. What had they done?
But these descendents of the ancient Vikings did not waste
much time in bemoaning their fate. No indeed. They set about build-
ing homes, tilling the soil, and catching fish for immediate use. The
bodily needs seen to, they began to think of the needs of the mind.
They established a governing body, a newspaper, a church and a
school. Before long they had set up Icelandic culture here in this
land and begun to make a permanent place for themselves and their
progeny. For here they were determined to stay and good citizens
they were going to be.
Outwardly, they were calm and contented, living for the future.
They saw their children grow to manhood and womenhood as re-
spected, hardworking, loyal Canadians. They were very grateful
to their God for all His many blessings and for His continued
care of them. Most of them never learned the language of the
adopted land. They enjoyed conversing in their own tongue and
in reading their precious books, which they brought with them.
Books took precedence over any other belongings. They were part
and parcel of the people. But a large part of each person was
still at home among the hills, and dales and on the coasts of Ice-
land. Time had drawn a veil over the frustrations and miseries
that had caused them to emigrate. The aging mind only retained
memories of the youthful joys and aspirations. Rose-colored glasses