The Icelandic Canadian - 01.03.1994, Blaðsíða 37

SPRING, 1994
THE ICELANDIC CANADIAN
147
But, nothing could surpass the
exhilaration and excitement of the
three-day Festival when it finally
happened. Once the Festival is upon
you, the time passes all to quickly!
It was the 104th anniversary of
Islendingadagurinn, and I was the
70th in a long line of Fjallkonur to be
appointed to represent the Icelandic
heritage as “Mother Iceland” at the
annual event.
The first description of the Ice-
landic nation being portrayed as the
"Fjallkona” is found in a poem written
in Iceland about 1750. The poem
described the apparel of a woman
named Isafold who wore a white
gown; on her head was a crown from
which a fiery volcano was erupting.
The Fjallkona is a symbol of the
essence of Icelandic culture and
history, which, in turn, draws atten-
tion to the ancestral origin and the
ties that bind all Icelanders to the
Motherland. The white dress rep-
resents purity and integrity. The high,
white lace head-dress and veil recalls
Iceland’s snow-capped mountain
peaks; the green mantle calls to mind
the lush green slopes and valleys of
Iceland. The veil is held on by a gold
crown. The crown radiates sunshine
and has a star in the centre standing
above the rising sun, with the
Icelandic coat of arms above it. There
are four shield bearers, symbolizing
the guardian spirits of Iceland. The
four symbols are emblematic of the
unity of Iceland. The splendid
Fjallkona crown and the belt, also of
gold, were crafted in Iceland over sixty
years ago.
It was a peculiar honour for me
personally to actually be playing the
role of Fjallkona, since I had attended
the Icelandic Celebration so often
through the years. I had that innate
awareness of being “Icelandic.” All my
grandparents had come from Iceland
and, having been bom and raised in
the west-end of Winnipeg, I was
surrounded by Icelanders a good deal
of the time in my youth. Indeed, there
has never been a time in my life when
I have not been involved in Icelandic
organizations. I have visited Iceland
three times and will be travelling
there once again on the charter flight
from Winnipeg this coming summer
to join in some of the festivities
celebrating the 50th anniversary of
the Republic of Iceland.
It was especially wonderful to have
all my own family on hand at Islend-
ingadagurinn. Being in the parade
with my two attendants, my grand-
daughter, Caitlin Spauls and my
niece, Elin Thordarson, was such a
thrill. As usual, hundreds of people
lined the streets of Gimli. It was
amazing to see the crowds gathered,
five and six deep along the parade
route, waving and calling out greet-
ings as we passed by in the long,
white convertible. I loved it, waving
and responding to their cheers as the
excitement of the day began to take
hold. And the momentum that began
with the parade continued for the rest
of the day!
The luncheon with the guest
speakers taking part in the main
program gave us the opportunity to
relax before returning to the Gimli
Park for the official afternoon pro-
gram. As we were being ushered
towards the main stage, by the Royal
Canadian Mounted Police, we paused
for a few moments at the Islendinga-
dagsklukka. (See stoiy in the Summer
1993 issue of The Icelandic Cana-
dian). It has become a tradition, since
the centennial celebration of islend-
ingadagurinn in 1989, to announce
the entrance of the Fjallkona into the
Gimli Park by the ringing of this bell,
and thereby begin the celebration of
the bonds between Iceland and North
America. I laid a wreath at the mem-
orial plaques beside the Islendinga-