The Icelandic Canadian - 01.03.1955, Blaðsíða 28

26
THE ICELANDIC CANADIAN
Spring 1955
Accompanied by Dr. Pall Kolka and
Mrs. Kolka of the town of Blonduos
we visited historic places in Hunvatns-
sysla and SkagafjorSur, both of which
are noted for their scenic beauty, not
neglecting, of course, to pay our re-
spects to Stephan G. Stephansson at
bis statue on VatnsskarS, where he
stands guard over his native district
which he has immortalized in his
poems. I
Continuing to SiglufjorSur in the
North, at the invitation of the City
Commission, we stopped on the way
at Holar in Hjaltadal, the long-time
bishopric of the North of Iceland,
with which some of the greatest names
in the history of Iceland are associat-
ed.
Earlier in the summer we had vis-
ited IsafjorSur in the West, as guests
of the Grand Lodge of the Icelandic
Good Templars and of the City, and
in the course of that visit we had seen
a striking manifestation of the “night-
less world”, previously referred to.
Returning from a party at about one
o’clock in the morning, we noticed a
peculiar glow on the mountain side,
there were soft reds and yellows, and
rosy tints underneath. “That”, said
our host, “is the sunset and the sun-
rise coming together.”
On the journey to the Northland,
at SauSarkrokur on the shore of
SkagafjorSur, we came, however, clos-
est to seeing the Midnight Sun itself.
At a farewell banquet there I rose at
Midnight to respond to a toast to the
Western Icelanders, and as I looked
out the window beside me, I saw the
fading crimson of evening and the
glow from the rising sun merge into
a sea of shimmering light. Nature had
provided me with my text in the in-
spiring words of Stephan G. Stephans-
son, which can be paraphrased as fol-
laws: “Do not let your mind or your
heart grow old; be a friend of the ev-
ening sun and a son of the dawn.”
For us it was both an unforgettable
experience and a source of lasting in-
spiration to learn to know Iceland,
the land itself, in all its scenic grand-
eur, and drink deep of its fountains
of historic memories, so richly abund-
ant. Nor was ft a lesser source of
pleasure for us to learn to know the
Icelandic nation, its culture and mani-
fold present-day activities. And we
were privileged to visit Iceland dur-
ing an unusually historic summer.
One major event followed another.
The annual Seaman’s Day (Sjo-
mannadagurinn), always an important
event to a seafaring nation like the
Icelanders, was this year especially
significant. Observed on June 13, it
was not only commemorated with a
most festive program, but climaxed by
the laying of the cornerstone of a new
and beautiful Seamen’s Home, at
which His Excellency Asgeir Asgeirs-
son, President of Iceland officiated.
Then came the high point of the
summer’s special festivities, the cele-
bration throughout the country, on
June 17, of the 10th anniversary of the
re-establishment of the Icelandic
Republic. The observance in Reykja-
vik, the capital, was most elaborate
and impressive, including parades,
special church services, addresses by
leaders of the nation, sports, and end-
ing with dancing in the streets, strik-
ingly illustrative of the joyous spirit
of the people on this happy occasion.
Another outstanding event of the
summer was the consecration of Dr.
Asmundur GuSmundsson as the bishop
of Iceland, which took place in the
venerable Cathedral at Reykjavik,
beautifully re-decorated for that his-
toric occasion. As might be expected,
the ceremony was marked by great
dignity, attended by the President of