Eyes that see the good in things: September 10, 2018

I have to tell you that I was the recipient of an act of kindness last week. While standing in line at Wal-Mart, I wasn’t really paying attention and my bottle of Coke Zero evidently tipped, falling past the divider on the cashier line and into the purchases of the woman in front of me. The cashier rang it up, but when the other woman realized she had been charged for my bottle of pop, she turned and handed it to me and told me to have a Coke on her. I tried to pay her as she turned and walked away, but she waved me off and told me to enjoy. It made me smile and I knew I had to share it with you.

Last week, I wrote about my parents’ 60th anniversary party. It was a blast! My most stressful moment was when I realized that I was going to be responsible for cooking the lutefisk!

It’s been fun watching as new pictures are posted to their Facebook event page. Some of the fun pictures came from the photo booth that my sisters set up. There was a Scandinavian mountain backdrop and a lot of Viking props like long capes; fur arm and leg bands; beards; shields; plastic swords, knives and axes, and of course, those iconic Viking horned helmets.

However, I also learned a few things about my ancestry in historical information my sister provided about the Vikings from History 101, a website that says it is dedicated to all things history. When I think about the Vikings, I think about big, hair-covered, vicious men who invaded, plundered and burned their way across Europe. History 101 said there is a partial truth to that because they did burn down churches and pillage villages, but they were also explorers, navigators, shipmen, settlers who founded cities and traders of goods all across the globe. It’s even possible that the Vikings were the first Europeans to have discovered America.

It’s very interesting to note that they did not call themselves Vikings. The term “viking” is actually a verb in the old Norse language that meant “pirate raid.” Scandinavians referred to people who went raiding and pillaging as “going viking.” They most likely called themselves Norse or Norsemen. There are also no records to support Vikings ever wore horned helmets.

Also, if you think Vikings were nothing but rippling muscles covered in leather and furs, you’d be disappointed. The Vikings didn’t look like bodybuilders. In fact, the majority of Norsemen were lean and would reach anywhere between 5′ 7″ – 5′ 9″ in height and dedicated much of their time to the wheat fields. In fact, most Norse were farmers, wielded a scythe, and maintained a balanced diet of protein, grains and greens. For those who didn’t partake in going viking, they spent their lives as farmers.

Most Norse populations had a simple farming life. As stated before, the Vikings were too busy moving around, establishing settlements and fighting to survive, but most of the other Norsemen grew oats, barley and wheat, and ground the grain to make flour, porridge and ale. They grew vegetables such as onions, beans and cabbage, and raised livestock such as pigs, sheep, goats, cattle, geese and chickens.

The Norse who “went viking” were savage on the battlefield, some warriors who were particularly violent were known as berserkers. The berserkers wore bearskins and were a special class of warriors who were supposedly blessed by the god Odin, the supreme god of the heavens and god of war. These warriors would work themselves into a state of frenzy with a “supernatural power” so intense that they could bite down on the edge of their shield and ignore the pain of their wounds. Some hypothesize it could be one or two things, either natural adrenaline or the magic mushrooms it was rumored they would consume to help prepare for battle.

Trading was essential for the Vikings and they would travel as far as Africa to trade furs, amber, ivory and slaves. It’s hard work maintaining farmland or a household on your own, and for Vikings, it was an impossible feat without the help of slaves. Human trafficking was a major market like any form of commerce, and many Vikings got rich by abducting women and young boys from any village they came across.

History 101 points out that there is evidence of women taking on the role of the warrior. Though rare, historian Johannes Skylitzes recorded on History.com that women fought alongside a group of Vikings in a battle against the Bulgarians in 971 AD and described “communities of warrior women as shieldmaidens who dressed like men and devoted themselves to learning swordplay and other warlike skills…”

Viking Age Scandinavian women enjoyed a tremendous degree of freedom when compared to other women of their time. Scandinavian women were able to own property, request a divorce and reclaim their dowries if their marriages failed. If their husbands died, women were expected to permanently take over their husband’s roles as the providers of their households, making many women traders, warriors and farmers.

However, women were expected to marry between the ages of 12 to 15, and their marriages were arranged even sooner than that. In a marriage agreement between the two families, the groom’s family paid a bride price to the bride’s family once the happy couple was married. The bride’s father paid a dowry, and there was even an agreement between the two families should the couple divorce.

A few other interesting facts are that the Vikings were one of the many civilizations responsible for spreading house mice worldwide. National Geographic reported DNA research showing a genetic pattern found only in mice originating from Norway; if you remember, Norway was the Vikings’ home base. Research also shows that cats were taken on board with their human companions, both on boats (probably how they spread to other geographic areas) and on the homestead to help curtail the mouse population. Not only did they get rid vermin, but they were kept as companions.

Several of our weekdays are named after Norse gods. Wednesday or Wodensday is named after Woden, father supreme of the Norse gods; Thursday or Thorsday is named after Thor, Norse god of thunder, and Friday or Freyasday is named after Freya, the goddess of love, fertility, beauty and marriage.

One last interesting tidbit… the most common natural hair colors for a Viking man or woman were brunette, red or black. Those born with blonde hair were considered attractive and more desirable, so both men and women used a soap with high quantities of lye to strip their hair blonde.

Well, at least they used lye for more than just the lutefisk…

We would love to share local stories about the good things your eyes are seeing.

Stop in to share your stories with us, give us a call at 947-2417 or e-mail us at [email protected]. Or send a letter to Eyes That See the Good in Things, c/o Allison Lindgren, The Transcript, 6 8th St N., New Rockford, ND 58356.