“That we leave our homes, that we step through our doors to the world, that we travel our whole lives not because we want to collect exotic T-shirts, not because we want to consume foreign adventure the same Western way we consume plastic and Styrofoam and LCD TVs and iPads, but because it has the power to renew us—not the guarantee, not the promise, just the possibility. Because there are places our imaginations can never construct for us, and there are people who we will never meet but we could and we might. It reminds us that there is always reason to begin again.” - Stephen Markley, Tales of Iceland or "Running with the Huldufólk in the Permanent Daylight"
I am currently flying over the eastern edge of northern Canada finally ready to put my thoughts from the last few days on the page. I dislike goodbyes...like really really dislike them. I get emotionally exhausted and withdrawn by them and this as no exception. I had a very funny moment in the staffroom before school began the other day. A math text was sitting on the table, the title incorporated the label “1B”. Ok, the grade 1 math book, excellent! I started to get wide-eyed as I flipped through the pages looking at complex graphs and word problems thinking to myself “oh my gosh...this is pretty darn advanced for grade 1”. Thank goodness for the staff member sitting beside me...when I asked “this is for grade 1???” She laughed aloud and said “No, the title says Math for teenagers...this is for grade 8!” Since then I have shared that story with many other staff members, all with the same light-hearted laugh. Making sense of things in a language you don’t know is exhausting! I’ve never needed so many afternoon naps in my life! Saying goodbye to the students and staff at Brekku was hard on the heart but saying goodbye to my Icelandic family was heartbreaking. My tears started in the doorway at home and came in waves throughout the morning. The only way I was able to get through security after hugging Dadda goodbye was confirming our plan to spend some time together in the summer of 2020. It will be then that she and Dori make their way to Calgary to spend time with us again...all of us together. Thank you Dori, our chef and comedian, the bringer of laughs and levity. I will miss our conversations so much! Hjordis, your room looks amazing and I do hope you will see yourself as we do soon...as someone destined to work in the field of service. We need soccer-playing, compassionate nurses like you girl! On Thursday evening I was treated to an amazing ladies only dinner party with some of the admin team from Brekku. Canadian flags and pins adorning the table and lobster two ways, the conversation was honest and full of head-back-belly-full-heart-light laughter. Near the end of the evening talk turned to the work we do on behalf of families and students. Thousands of miles may separate us but the commitment we feel to this work is the very same. Self-regulation strategies, individualized programming, outside agency supports...these are at the heart of our days regardless of setting. I learned a lot in the company of these amazing women and am grateful to have spent time alongside them these past two weeks. On my last night in Akranes we feasted on reindeer and roast vegetables! It was so delicious and made even more sweet by the giggles and antics of our youngest guests Valur and Binni. I will miss those little dudes and appreciated an opportunity to spend one more evening with them and Gisli. I am sorry not to have been able to say goodbye to Gunnsa but will think of her every time I listen to the CD of her fiddle group she gifted me. Celtic-Icelandic fiddle tunes - just perfect for driving to work!! My last day in Iceland held one more family celebration, this time a birthday party for Dadda’s nephew! Two of the party goers met me at the door and exclaimed “I’ve read your blog!” I was so surprised, and honoured, they would spend time reading all about my Canadian craziness! I should almost have a disclaimer at the beginning of it - WARNING some stories within not for the faint of heart! ;O)
Driving through Reykjanes to the Keflavik airport is much like driving through a Martian landscape. The lava fields are a foreign landscape outside of Iceland and, despite being here for two weeks, still feel very odd to my eyes. Our usual chatter was much more subdued the closer to the airport we drove. As wonderful and exciting as this experience has been, I know the true impact of it will drift over me in the coming days and weeks. I hope more people decide to participate in the opportunity for exchange. There is something quite powerful about stepping outside one’s comfort zone and looking up and out at the view before you while in a new place. It is exhausting, and heart-wrenching, humbling and oft times hilarious but it is also an experience that epitomizes growth. I know I am not the person I was when I left for Iceland...and I am grateful for that. Thank you for following alongside me, for laughing with me, and for giving me strength when I needed it most. I feel it most appropriate to come full circle and end with the quote that began this journey for me… “That we leave our homes, that we step through our doors to the world, that we travel our whole lives not because we want to collect exotic T-shirts, not because we want to consume foreign adventure the same Western way we consume plastic and Styrofoam and LCD TVs and iPads, but because it has the power to renew us—not the guarantee, not the promise, just the possibility. Because there are places our imaginations can never construct for us, and there are people who we will never meet but we could and we might. It reminds us that there is always reason to begin again.” - Stephen Markley, Tales of Iceland or "Running with the Huldufólk in the Permanent Daylight"
1 Comment
Gunnsa
4/9/2019 14:58:39
I'm so sad that we did'nt say good bye. It was so nice to meet you Aubrey! 😊 and i hope that we will meet again one day in Iceland 😉
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AuthorAubrey: "Leader of the Elves"....that's me. Mom of two amazing guys, wife to one bigger (yet no less amazing) guy and teacher of little ones. Blogging about the adventures (usually with my rubber chicken in tow) is one of my favourite things. Archives
April 2019
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