The Icelandic Canadian - 01.03.1994, Page 5

SPRING, 1994
THE ICELANDIC CANADIAN
1 15
QUEST EDITORIAL
by Betty Jane Wylie
xJke fiereeness of men rules
women.
the Elder Edda J
Icelandic women are the longest-
lived women in the world. Life
expectancy for Icelandic Canadian
women may be slightly lowered due to
the excesses of the New World and the
dilution of the genetic stream through
marriage with other nationalities, but
they’re right up there. I was surprised
when my mother (Inga Tergesen
McKenty) died at 82 because I had
expected her to live at least another
ten or twelve years. My aunt Anna
(Anna Tergesen Jonasson) didn’t leave
until she was 97. I figure I’m going to
stick around for a while. Air and car
travel present more of a threat than
the major diseases. Here I am, in good
company, and I still have work to do,
as do you all.
Women with that thick, rich,
Viking blood are not the only ones
today facing longer life spans than