The Sunstone

Eons ago, (and that is a very, very long time), there was a Viking named Agnarr who sailed to Iceland.  Leaving his longboat at the base of a cliff, he set off to explore the island with his Viking crew.   He knew his boat would be safe there.  After all, there were very few people in Iceland in those days, and who would dare steal from a Viking? 

As he walked away with his men, a small brown mouse poked his head up and watched them.  The mouse was Tassi and he had been a resident of the longboat for several years.  As they sailed back and forth, Tassi enjoyed exploring each new land and sampling the endless supply of new foods.  He stretched out along the wide bench, sunning himself in the weak afternoon rays, when suddenly a shadow crossed over him.  He sat up and looked around.  “Strange,” he thought, “it must have been a bird.” and he laid back down.  Just as he started to close his eyes again, he caught a quick movement at the end of the boat.  Tassi looked around slowly.  Everything seemed to be in order.  The oars were all neatly lined up, the boxes of food and supplies tied down in the center, and the prized Sunstone hung at the bow, glinting and sparkling in the bright sunshine. Ship captains used the position of the sun in the sky to navigate their ships.  The Vikings used the rare  stone to navigate on cloudy days when they couldn’t see the sun.  Otherwise, they would not be able to tell which direction they were going if it were cloudy or raining.  The Sunstone was a crystal spar that they could only find in Iceland.

As Tassi watched, a strange-looking creature jumped into the boat and quick as a wink snatched up that glittery rock, disappearing back over the side rail.  Tassi stared, shocked, as the little man scampered away with his prize.   This simply would not do!  Without the Sunstone, the Viking captain would not be able to navigate except on sunny days.  Their adventures and exploring would come to an end!  Tassi jumped over the side of the boat and ran as quickly as he could after the creature.  “Stop Thief!”  he shouted, “You stop there!”

The little man paid him no attention and quickly disappeared from sight.  Tassi looked around in desperation.  He spotted a bird with a black and white body and bright orange-colored feet and beak.  He knew Icelandic bird was very smart and could fly very fast.

“Mr Puffin!”  he shouted, his whiskers shaking violently as he ran, “Mr Puffin!”

The Puffin turned to look and the tiny mouse scampering excitedly toward him.  “Well, hello there little one!”  he said, cocking his head as he looked down.

“Mr. Puffin, thank goodness you are here!” squeaked the little mouse in his squeaky little voice, “I am Tassi and I sail with the Viking Agnarr”

“Good Morning, Tassi, I am Fimm, at your service—how can I help you?” the Puffin said as he bowed to the little mouse.

“I was standing guard on our Viking longboat as everyone else went exploring, when a strange little man with thick eyeglasses jumped on board and stole the Sunstone!” Tassi explained quickly.

To his surprise, the Puffin chuckled and shook his head.  

“That would be Window Peeper you saw.  He is one of the Yule Lads and often swipes the most sparkly and glittery trinkets.  You are in luck, Tassi, I can indeed help you.”  He bent down and Tassi quickly scrambled on his back.

Fimm took off and flew several miles, to a tall cliff wall that was covered in a creepy fog.  Fimm spoke quietly, “You stay here, I must ask for help from the Hidden Folk.  I do not know where the Yule Lad’s cave is.”

Tassi watched as Fimm approached an opening in the stone wall.  As if by magic, a beautiful creature appeared, smiling and nodding.  Fimm bobbed his head back and fluttered his wings.  The beautiful woman pointed to a spot high in the mountains and as Tassi watched, she disappeared in the swirl of fog.  Fimm came back to where Tassi had waited.  “That was Sigga.  She is a very old and wise member of the Hidden Folk.  She showed me where the Yule Lad’s cave is.  I can fly us there, but you will have to sneak in and steal back the Sunstone.  Just be very quiet and don’t get caught!” he warned.  Tassi nodded.

 A puffin can fly as fast as a horse can gallop, and Fimm flew as fast as he could toward the cave the Hidden woman had pointed out.  He landed on a tiny ledge and as quick as Window Peeper had stolen the Sunstone, Tassi jumped off and scampered into the hidden cave.

Fimm paced nervously as he waited for Tassi.  Minutes ticked by and Fimm worried about his new little friend. Suddenly, he heard squeaks and shouts! A rustling noise grew louder by the entrance to the cave.  Fimm saw a brown blur come flying out at top speed, barreling right for him!  He heaved a huge sigh of relief when he saw it was Tassi, the sunstone sparkling as it dangled from its leather string grasped tightly between the mouse’s jaws.  Fimm scooped him up on his back and took off from the cliff, flying straight back to the beach.

Minutes later, Fimm had dropped Tassi and the precious Sunstone back at the longboat, just as the Viking Agnarr and his crew appeared in the distance.  Fimm watched later as Tassi sailed away on his next adventure, but knew they would see each other again the next time Agnarr’s longboat brought Tassi back to Iceland. 

-Short Story by Heidi Herman

Leave the Calving to the Elves!

Near the Eyjafjöll mountains in an area called Drangshlíð, there is a big rock in a field, almost the height of 20 men. On one side of it, there are caves and big spaces beneath it, and the farmers kept there all of their hay and their cowsheds.  In the cowsheds, no candles or lanterns would stay lit, no matter how hard people would try to keep the flame alive. 

The distance from the farm to the cowsheds in the rock was a long one, and on cold, dark, stormy winter nights it was not easy walking to the cowsheds. But the elves in the rock would take care of the cows in the cowsheds while they were giving birth to their calves.   It was tradition in this area that one of the stalls always had to be kept vacant for elf-cows.  Human beings were not allowed to sit by the cows while they were giving birth. If the farmer could see that a cow was about to give birth that night he would leave the milking bucket, filled with good hay, by the window above the door of the cowshed.  The elves would then attend to the cow; they milked it after it gave birth, fed the calf and the cow. And the milking bucket was in the same position where the farmer had left it, filled!

Any time the farm would change hands, if the new owner would follow tradition, he would have his assistants stay with the cow while it was giving birth.  If they did this, something would inevitably go wrong.  They would hear and see strange things.  In all cases, the assistants would not be able to stay inside in the dark cowsheds and fled.  The farmers learned it was best to let the elves tend to the cows.

Edited from

Drangshlíð rock and the elves!

By Regína Hrönn Ragnarsdóttir 

Jules Verne on Icelandic Horses

I can just imagine Jules Verne riding an Icelandic horse, traversing fjords and mountains as he learned about Iceland while researching his book "Journey to the Center of the Earth".

 "There is no more sagacious animal than the Icelandic horse. He is stopped by neither snow, nor storm, nor impassable roads, nor rocks, glaciers, or anything. He is courageous, sober, and surefooted. 

He never makes a false step, never shies. If there is a river or fjord to cross (and we shall meet with many) you will see him plunge in at once, just as if he were amphibious, and gain the opposite bank." - Author: Jules Verne

Wiggle Waggle Monsters

This week's work has centered around three new short stories.  I am expanding the Yule Lads coloring book to be a full activity book and include new characters.  The characters are introduced in stories and included in games and puzzles along with the coloring book pages.  The new stories in the book are Gryla's Story-Origins of the Yule Lads, Monster Worm's Afternoon, and The Sunstone.  

While researching these stories, I came across delightful references to "Wiggle Waggle" Monsters.  You can be sure they will turn up in a collection all their own.  What is a Wiggle Waggle Monster?  They are very unique characters that show up in dance-games associated with Vikivaki Games.  The Vikivaki are sort of the Scandinavian version of an old western barn dance, where Wiggle Waggle Monsters are introduced in dance-games similar to Turkey in the Straw.  

The Wiggle Waggle Monster dances are reminiscent of Indian tribal dance that records the history of tribal victories in battle and the hunt.  In the case of the Vikivaki, the stories being told are of wicked monsters, lonely travelers, and Christmas spirits.  There are elements and origins in Icelandic, Norwegian, Danish, Swedish and Finnish traditions, as well as some Faroese, Shetland, and Scottish.  Stories of the Vikivaki Games can be traced back as far as 1588 and were continued as a tradition through 1877.

The Guardians of Iceland

Once there was a Danish King named Harald Bluetooth.  He was the King over all of Denmark and Norway and he decided he wanted to rule Iceland as well.  King Harald had heard stories about the fierce Viking Warriors there. He also heard about the strange land filled with trolls, hidden folk and magical creatures that protected the land.   King Harald decided to send his most powerful wizard as a spy.

So, the wizard changed himself into a whale and swam to Iceland.   The wizard approached the coast on the east and looked around for just the right place to come ashore.  He swam into a wide bay and decided it looked like a pretty good spot.  Just as he neared the shore and began to concentrate on magically changing back into his human form, he heard a great buzzing growing louder and louder.  He looked over to the mountains and saw a huge Dragon come racing over the top and flew down through the valley directly towards him.  Following close behind the dragon were all sorts of snakes and lizards squirming and slithering all over the place. 

With a heaving splash of his mighty whale fin, the wizard quickly dove back deep in the water and swam as fast as he could back out to the sea.   He swam away to the north.  Here, he found several very nice big inlets, and he made his way to the beach to change into his human form.  No sooner had he touched his first toe on the land he heard a terrible racket.  As he looked up, he saw a huge Eagle.  It was so big that as it flew, the tips of its wings touched the mountains on either side of the valley.  In a flock surrounding the Eagle, hundreds of birds of every sort flew towards him.  The wizard quickly jumped back into the ocean and swam away as fast as he could. 

He swam away from the Dragon and away from the huge Eagle, heading further west.  He came to the edge of the island and turned south.  There, he found a large bay.  He thought this looked like a good safe place to come ashore and look around.  No sooner had he started to swim into the bay when he heard a loud snort.  As he looked up, a large bull came towards him, waded into the sea and began to bellow menacingly.  Shimmering and swooping around, a band of land spirits followed it down from the mountains.  This was no good at all!  The wizard quickly gave a flip of his mighty whale fin and swam as fast as he could back to the ocean.

He only had one more placed left to check.  He had been chased away by a Dragon, a Giant Eagle and now a Huge Bull.  He swam past the small towns on the coast and saw the capital city, Reykjavik in the distance.  He swam into the bay and stopped.  Was it safe?  He moved closer to land and as he feet touched the sand, he quickly changed back to his human wizard form.  Just as he did, a powerful rumbling sounded and the ground under his feet shook and rocks tumbled.  The wizard looked up and a huge mountain Giant appeared over the mountain.  His head was higher than the mountain tops and as the wizard watched, the Giant used an iron staff to step right over the tall mountains.  The wizard ran for the water, quickly changing back into his whale form.  As he looked back, the mountain Giant was now surrounded by many other giants of all sizes and types.  He swam quickly away, barely escaping as the Giant’s huge hand snapped down to grab him.

This country of Iceland was protected on all sides!  The wizard had no choice but to return to the King and tell him of all the mighty Guardians of Iceland that kept the people and magical inhabitants safe.  To this day, no one has attacked Iceland or defeated the Guardians.

Icelandic Folk Tales Coming Soon!

Hi!  I've been hanging out in the library, researching and listening to the Icelandic legends and stories as Mom tells them.

I'm working hard on the folk tale collection - can't wait to share it with you all!  What's included?  The full story of the Icelandic Guardians, the whole story of the Monster Worm and lots more stories on the escapades of those mischievous Yule Lads!  You won't believe what the Lads are up to!

Yule Lads Summer Vacation

I wonder now what the Icelandic Yule Lads do in the Summer months?  I know they all travel back to their snug cave in the mountain in January - right after Christmas.  I imaging they spend a couple months swapping stories and laughing about all the ruckus they raised.  All the mischief they stirred up.  Window Peeper probably had pockets-full of shiny baubles that he brought out on cloudy gray days.  No doubt the sparkle of his trinkets in the candlelight raised their spirits during the dreary snowy days of the deep winter.

But now the Spring has come.  Birds are chirping and the grass is becoming green again. What do the Yule Lads do in the Spring and Summer? Do they sneak around and create havoc no one knows about?  Do they sleep?  Whittle?  Re-decorate the cave?  Or, perhaps they have adventures no one has heard about yet........maybe, just maybe, someone might discover these adventures and tell the stories...