Spring finally arrived!

This is the week that spring arrived! (week 20). The trees are finally turning green. Some people are mowing their lawns. All it took was a couple warm days and everything burst forth.

Week 20 began with Independence Day, the 17^th of May. There was a 10 am service at church (there is no separation of church and state in Norway). The hymns at the service were mostly Norwegian patriotic songs: Ja, vi elsker dette landet, Gud signe vårt dyre fedreland, Fagert er landet, and a couple others which had no connection to Independence Day. Most of the women (and a few men) were decked out in their bunads (national costumes). There were about 60 in attendance. After the service there was a short outdoor ceremony remembering those who fell during WW II. A men’s chorus sang Ja, vi elsker dette landet. There was a short speech, role call of those who died, and the laying of a wreath in their memory.

I spoke with a lady named Berit whom I had met earlier. It turns out that a pastor from Decorah, Iowa was here in Sandnessjøen for a year in the late 1990’s. The pastor’s name is Paul Christenson. I remember him when I was a student at Luther. Small world.

After the wreath-laying ceremony I walked downtown to see the parades. Around noon the parades met downtown. All the school children marched, each school with its own banner. There was also a borgertog, a citizen parade. Anyone who wished could walk along. The main speech (talen for dagen) was a little long but stressed respect and tolerance for each other. (Could the U.S. learn something from this?) Unfortunately the weather then turned sour. It didn’t snow but a cold rain began with strong winds that went right through you. But fortunately the cold weather came after the parades. There were two free movies at the end of the day for children.

My work week is much more regulated here in Norway than it was in the States. I am entitled to two complete free days per week. Since I had to work on Monday (a holiday), Tuesday and Wednesday, I was given Thursday and Friday off. Leisure time is highly prized. (Saturday I have to play for a wedding, and Sunday two services for Pentecost). I bought a mobile phone and did some other shopping. Friday was a gorgeous day. Not a cloud in the sky, but temperatures only reaching the mid 50’s. Ash from the volcano in Iceland has closed some airports north of here. They may close all the airports on Saturday.

Sunrise for Saturday the 22 of May is at 3 am; sunset at 11:10 pm. Total daylight is just over 20 hours. The 4 hours between 11 and 3 are not dark: they transition from dusk to twilight. Just one more month left of increasing light. Rain is forecast for the weekend.

Saturday I played for a wedding at the medieval stone church called Alstahaug Church. The oldest part is from about 1200. The church is one of the gems of the area. For a short time this was the regional cathedral for northern Norway. The organ is very interesting: a one-manual instrument built in 1898 by Rieger of Austria. It's a mechanical action organ but needs some maintenance. This wedding was very simple: no prelude music, just an opening wedding march, 2 hymns and a recessional march.

Week 20 ended with 2 services for Pentecost Sunday. The morning service was in Sandnessjøen Church followed by a sort of grilled hotdog picnic. There were 4 baptisms at the service so the attendance was quite high: 105. I helped with grilled hotdogs. Picnics are very popular with kids, reflected by the high turnout of children. The afternoon service was an outdoor affair on the southwestern end of the island, near Tjøtta. We had to transport an electric piano, along with refreshments. Fortunately the rain held off and the outdoor service went ahead as planned, although few attended: a total of 6. On the way back we saw 4 moose. Tomorrow (Pentecost Monday) is a holiday, the last one for awhile.