Darkness and Light

Jennifer here, a first-year M.A. student at Wartburg. My husband and I moved from Seattle, Washington to Dubuque, Iowa in the summer of 2008. As recent Seattleites, we have some experience with SAD, although you don’t realize how much it gets to you until you move away. I love, love, love the sun. My ideal Saturday is spent simply sitting in front of a sunny window (with a cup of coffee and a book of theology or popular physics). I once built a greenhouse out of salvaged windows just so I could sit and enjoy the light (remember, this was Seattle). So I’m very interested to find out what it’s like to spend two weeks (never mind several months) in semi-darkness. I’m also curious how people’s homes and other spaces are designed to compensate or perhaps celebrate the long periods of winter darkness and summer light.

I also understand that Icelanders have a very real mythological relationship with their beautiful environment. I am interested to see hints of what that might mean, especially as relates to Christianity. I enjoy reading mythology, especially Greek and Norse mythology (including of course modern mythology like the Lord of the Rings). I’ve actually owned copies of the poetic and prose Eddas for years, along with a book of Icelandic fairy tales, but never read them. This is clearly my big chance.

I hope that this trip will be a time of relative quiet and contemplation to go along with the darkness. I am ready for some rest from my hectic student-and-part-time-work life. I hope to learn a new appreciation and approach to darkness, meditation, and enjoyment of the natural beauty of the world from my visit to Iceland.