My Last Day of School

Tomorrow is officially the last day of school, but I’m not going, so today was my last day. I didn’t even want to go today, but The Good Teacher Inga had planned a hike out to a nature preserve on an outer island near here and I really wanted to see it as she said it’s her all-time favorite place to be. As I’ve learned from living here, I must experience how to get somewhere first hand, as the trails are not marked and not in my wildest dreams would I ever imagine I could go in a certain direction unless I’d been led there first. So I needed to set aside the packing and instead take a break and go see some of God’s handiwork along the coastline of Norway. I wasn’t disappointed. I’m sure I will be back to that place many times in the future as it was fantastic with sandy beaches, beautiful farm land and amazing rock formations all sandwiches between the ocean and some mountains. Oh, how I love Norway.

Our destination was a rocky wind break (see photo) built by some local guy. It’s shaped like a “t” so that there is a place to sit in each quarter, depending on which direction the wind is blowing. It’s nice to have a guaranteed wind-free spot no matter what. The wind always blows out there and even on a nice day like today, it was a bit chilly, but sitting inside the shelter, it was downright hot. It’s so clever not just from that standpoint, but also because it’s built entirely from things found along the beach. The rocks used to build the walls posed a problem for the builder, as it’s built inside a Nature Preserve and not even a single rock is to be moved from its original location. The government came down on the guy pretty hard with a big fine and impending jail time, but the entire island community came together and claimed they too helped build the shelter and if they were going to fine him and put him in jail, then they must put them all in jail as well. The government backed down and left him alone and the shelter stands today as a sign of community pride. Local artists also flock to it. (It’s not well known outside the island.) Many of the rocks are beautifully painted and all the wood that is somewhat flat has poems written on it. Beach treasures decorate the walls, including a whale bone and the skull of a dolphin. It’s a collection spot for everything odd that washes up on the beaches so it’s a fun place to explore.

We all brought a little food along today so about 15 of us crammed into the little spot circling the palate that’s used a table, and we all ate lunch together and talked about Norway and our Norwegian class. I’m so going to miss The Good Teacher and I tried not to cry when I had to say good-bye. It was a nice way to get a sense of completion. Kory came along also because I wanted him to see this place and help me remember how to get there so we can take others there in the future. I’m glad I went.

After we got back to town Kory and I ran some errands, dropping off things at Salvation Army, donating books to the library and changing our address with our car insurance company. We also bought some special travel insurance we need for driving down into Europe. It wasn’t cheap (nothing in Norway is), but it’s good for a year all over the world (even in America), so if we have some unexpected medical expenses, we have full, unlimited coverage. Now there’s a bargain. I just hope we don’t need to use it.

Kaleb didn’t do much at school today except watch a soccer game between the 7th graders and all the teachers. The teachers won. He also got back his end of the year test and was proud that he got 123 of out of 140 correct. It covered everything they had learned the whole year – even stuff he was taught last fall before he knew how to speak Norwegian, so he was impressed with himself. We were pretty proud, too. He said if the test were in English he would have gotten 100% but some things he just didn’t understand. Like one thing said to draw a star pattern, so he drew a star, but what they meant was a constellation – so the Big Dipper would have been the thing to draw. Not understanding the innuendos of just one word throws everything off, so he did extremely well considering his learning curve.

We were invited over to Solevaag for dinner tonight with Kory’s mom’s cousin, Oddrun. They are just the nicest folks over there and they make the best food, so I was thrilled I didn’t have to make dinner. It cut into our packing time, but we’ll be leaving Friday whether we are ready or not, so I couldn’t worry about that when dinner was calling… plus, Oddrun made some homemade ice cream and plum pudding. Man, was that ever tasty. She also made a cheese cake – they really like desserts around here. I’m not sure my waistline can stand too many more parties, but I’ve got all summer to walk it off. And I must or I won’t be able to fit into any of the clothes I have waiting for me back home. Uffa meg.