Wednesday, September 8, 2010

sustain(able)ity


whew. the first five days at sólheimar have flown by. what i've experienced in the past five days has already begun the unavoidable (and very exciting) process of changing my mind. i've eaten several meals made from icelandic ingredients, all which have been tremendously satisfying and healthy. my body is already adjusting and i couldn't be happier about this. spending breakfast and dinner with the whole CELL group makes me feel so at home, and our daily lunches with the sólheimar community are entertaining and rewarding. the cafeteria has served us fish with pineapple curry sauce, chicken and potatoes, and lamb stew - just a little food imagery to get your taste buds curious.

i am in awe of the landscapes i am blessed to wake up to every morning. as far as the eye can see are moss-covered mountains in the distance. surreal doesn't even touch the emotion i experience everytime i walk out the backdoor of the brekkukot house. i love exploring the new buildings and workshops. there is so much magic here, i feel as if iceland may never fully sink in.

classes are going great. our icelandic language/history course is off to a wonderful start. we are learning the icelandic alphabet, which excludes c, q, and w, and has three letters i've never encountered before: ð, þ, and æ. as the days progress, my icelandic tongue that was born on saturday has progressed and i am able to make more complicated sounds when communicating with the people here, like "dl" and "eegh" and "kva" (harder than it looks). our other CELL class started today and we had a remarkable three-hour discussion that was pretty much popcorn style with everyone ratting off their opinions, but very respectfully with everyone else listening actively, something that the group strives to always practice. today left me with improved outlooks on sustainability, environmental/mental possibilities, diet, my subconscious, and death.

my double dorm right now is very quiet. in iceland, the only thing that makes a sound is the wind - and when you are guarded from that wind, the world settles down enough to let your mind blossom. although we are all struggling to find a balance, i will speak for myself when i say i have revolutionized my thinking in a mere 120 hours. this growth would not have been possible were it not for katherine, karin, sylvia, ben, nate, jason, phil, rachael, victoria, jeannie, lizzie, maddy, cassie, eric, katrin, and the sólheimar community. i am falling in love with everyone, and i think they are beginning to notice. (gott.)



tomorrow: reykjavik.
i put this post to rest tonight with a haiku:

mountains feel no ease
buggy moss, and sleeping cold
heroes are the hills


st

2 comments:

  1. I am so deeply happy for you and this journey. I love you, Mom

    ReplyDelete
  2. Very good stuff! Excellent!

    love,
    dad

    ReplyDelete