The mill hasn’t pumped today.

Well, I understood the words—Amma’s translation—but it wasn’t until I l knew something of my grandfather’s history that I understood what they meant. This is why Roots are so important. You find and keep the clues before they make any sense.

My Amma’s voice helped me years later when I was trying to learn Icelandic, remembered things she told me and made sense of it. Unlike my mother, Amma was very willing to answer my questions. Bedtime came first. I used to go to Gimli off-season, too, and stayed with either my grandparents or my Auntie Anna, when we had Easter vacation or my parents went on a trip. (My brother stayed with his best friend, his cousin Joey, Uncle Joe’s and Aunt Laura’s son.)

I always used to say “pleasant dreams”, don’t know who taught me that. I asked Amma how to say it in Icelandic. Her answer sounded like this to me: locte the drayma vel.” Years later I figured out that I was saying “let thyself dream well”. I’ve looked up Amma’s translation, couldn’t find the reflexive wish. But you can say: skemmtileger draumar.

The most significant sentence she taught me was a grammar lesson I needed to know.

Summertime. I was excited to be invited on a picnic with some friends. I asked Amma how did I say “I’m going to go too.”?

Ég ætla að fara líka

It´s a lovely idiom, useful for everything you intend to do: Ég ætla að læra íslensku

I’m going to learn Icelandic!!!