Rusted Root

“A people without the knowledge of their past history, origin and culture is like a tree without roots.” -Marcus Garvey

This weekend I had the most amazing opportunity- I was able to go and visit some relatives and to see the house that my Great-Grandmother was born and raised in. In the fall a woman named Lillian contacted me over Facebook, saying my Uncle Kirk (Thanks, Kirk!) had let her know I was in Norway this year and invited me out to come and visit her and her family. They live in a very small town called Årdal in the Sogn og Fjordane. This town is right across a mountain (really through a mountain) from Oferdal, which is the place my Great-Grandmother, my Grandma’s mother, came from. After some back and forth with Lillian we were finally able to find a weekend that worked for both of us- so off I went back to my roots!

Because Årdal is in such a remote location and over quite a few mountains, it is only accessible by bus. On Friday morning I picked up the 5.15 train out of Bø and headed into Oslo. After about a two hour wait, I picked up the bus for Årdal. Fortunately, the bus driver was kind enough to let me I had to switch buses partially through my trip, but unfortunately, I did not bother to ask him about how long that would be. So instead of taking a nice long 3 hour nap like I could have done, I said the alarm on my phone to go off every 15-20 minutes so I could wake up and check if we were stopping or not. After my bus transfer I had about another hour and a half on the bus. It snowed most of the way through and in fact, once we were up in the mountains, it was difficult to even tell where the mountains stopped and the sky started. After dropping off some skiers at the top, we made our way down the mountain to Årdal and after about 9 hours of traveling I finally made it at 3.30.

 

Lillian, her husband and her youngest daughter, Ingrid, picked me up at the bus stop and took me back to their home. I cannot even imagine growing up in this town. It touches right on the fjord, with a lake right behind it and mountains completely surrounding it. And their house not only had a spectacular view, but it looked as if it was right out of a home design catalogue- absolutely beautiful and so chic. After dropping my things off in the room, we all had a bite to eat completely with some good conversation.

Both Lillian and her husband are teachers. Lillian works with 7^th graders and he with 10^th graders. They have two daughters. Ingrid is 24 and works as a nurse in Bergen. Catherina is 27 and is married with two children- Casper (2) and Ella (1). She and her family also live in Årdal. In fact much of their family- aunts, uncles, cousins, grandparents- all live in Årdal. Including, Lillian’s mother and father. Her father is my Grandma’s cousin.

Afterwards, Ingrid took me a drive and showed me around the town and some of the houses of her relatives. We stopped by the grocery store to pick up a few things and then headed back home for some supper. Not only does Lillian know how to decorate, but she also knows how to cook. We had a delicious salad and some homemade pizza. We finished out the night talking and watching some TV.

Saturday morning, after a quick breakfast, we headed out for Offerdal. To get over to that side of the mountain we had to take a few tunnels, which included Northern Europe’s steepest tunnel, which was slightly terrifying. Once on the right side of the mountain, we drove as far as we could get, but then had to park and walk about ¾ of a mile due to icy conditions. The weather and the view were absolutely beautiful so it didn’t matter. At the house we were met with Lillian’s parents and also her sister and her husband. They gave me a tour of the land and the house. The house itself is not the same one my Great-Grandmother was born in. It has been rebuilt, but it is on the same exact location as the old one. The house is surrounded by about 4 other buildings, all used for storage and keeping animals (when they had them) and an outhouse. One of the smaller buildings is actually the same as it was when my Great-Grandmother lived there. They also showed me a bunch of pictures of my different Norwegian relatives and even some pictures sent by family members in the States. I was also shown pictures of the time when my mother, uncle and grandparents came to Norway back when my Momma was about my age now.

We spent a good part of the early afternoon sitting on the deck eating and drinking tea and coffee. I was able to ask lots of questions and learn a bunch about my ancestors, with the help of Ingrid and her parents translating for me- Lillian’s parents do not speak English. After eating, they took me down by an old mill which my great-great-grandfather used to work at. In fact, he was the boss or so I’m told. Soon enough though we hiked back up the mountain to the car.

 

We made our way back to the house and after a quick shower, Catherina, her husband and her children joined us at the house for a while. The kids were so adorable. Casper is just learning to talk and so he could understand I didn’t speak Norwegian and that made him very shy. But I did get a big hug from them before they left. Ella is just about 1 (it’s her first birthday next Saturday) and so she was just as curious as could be. They stayed for about an hour or so and then had to head home, the kids were getting very tired.

Ingrid took me on another drive to show me the other half of Årdal. The city is separated by a lake and she showed me where she went to upper secondary school and where she used to work and such.  We made our way back home to more delicious food for supper and finished the night with a movie on TV and some more conversation.

Today (Sunday) after breakfast and packing, we made our way to the elementary/ middle school where they work. They gave me a nice tour of the school, showed me their classrooms and offices and other main spots. We then made our way over to Lillian’s parents’ house for lunch. Traditional meatballs and mashed potatoes, followed with some riscream for dessert. I do not think I have ever eaten so much in my life. After stuffing ourselves, they dug out some old photographs and we spent a good hour or so looking though old photos of the family. Soon enough it was time to head out so Ingrid could pick up her train back to Bergen. We dropped Ingrid off and then headed back to the house. I was able to finish up packing and then soon enough it was time to drop me off at the train station. Now, after a bus transfer and a transfer to the train I’m about a half an hour away from home, which sounds so wonderful after 8 hours of traveling.

My visit was short, but very sweet. Lillian and her family were so wonderful to me and I cannot begin to explain the simple amazement and honor I felt by being to go back to the home of my ancestors. It was quite the experience and I cannot thank them enough for having me.

With this trip completed, I’m back to Bø and back to finals. I have my first one on Tuesday and then will be finishing up hopefully by May 3^rd. I’m going to push myself to get all of my papers done before my mother makes her way here.

It is the most terrifying thing to think I will be going home in a month and 10 days. Don’t get me wrong- I miss you all back home dearly- but I am just not quite ready for this grand adventure to be over with. Actually I don’t know if I could ever be ready for it to be over with.