Today is Norwegian Independence Day, when Norwegians
celebrate the 1814 constitution which gave them freedom from Denmark and Sweden.
It’s their biggest national holiday and marked with parades and flags.
On the day after Frog died (four and a half months ago) a Norwegian flag arrived in the post. My grandmother was Norwegian and I have many relatives living there, so I knew that Frog had ordered the flag as a surprise present for me.
I haven’t flown a flag since Frog died and the Norwegian flag has been sitting on a shelf, still in its plastic wrapper. Today I hoisted it – not because of my new independence but because I know that seeing it will make Frog proud and happy (wherever he is).
It took some doing and the flag fell down after my first
attempt, but here it is now. It’s made me proud and happy too - for lots of reasons.
And here is my aunt's flag, flying in Norway this morning.
We loved seeing it flying when we passed today - well done for persisting in getting it installed. It's also a delightful way to honour Frog's gift.
ReplyDeleteSo glad you saw it! xx
ReplyDeleteDear dear B. So sorry I missed this. What a truly wonderful gift from Frog - proud and happy - yes, yes indeed. And so poignant and vital to keep this connection with your family strong and visible while you are also so bravely flying the flag of your wounded healing heart...gently gently. Much love Trish X
ReplyDeleteLovely to hear from you, Trish. xx
ReplyDeleteI seem to recall from my girl guiding days that raising a flag is not as simple a task as you may think and can involve some very strange knots ... which means that the flag actually goes up the pole folded and then unfurls artistically when it reaches the top. From seeing the number of anonymous comments it seems that lots of people may be affected by the issues with blogger and commenting at the moment ... hence my late comment ... it only works properly when I am on the desktop and that doesn't happen often, so apologies ... but I am thinking of you. Take care :)
ReplyDeleteDear Carol - Thank you for commenting, in spite of the difficulties at the moment. You have cleverly managed to comment as yourself, which is more than I'm able to do! I hope your mum is managing. Bx
ReplyDelete