I stood by your grave today and told you of my plans. I am on my way to your homeland of long, long ago. Many of your family left but some stayed behind. You worked hard and never complained. You made the best of everything. Iceland was beautiful on that long summer night you left but circumstances brought you to your home in the west.
I am tied to your homeland though many years have passed. Tears stream down my face when I walk in your footsteps and see the same place that you called your home. I wish you were here and could tell me the tale. I wish to know details of all of your days.
So many of your kinsmen also came this way. We are telling their stories and preserving them to this day. Your blood is our blood and the love of Iceland remains. We are bonded together in the future and the past.
Pönnukökur, Kleinur, and other tasty treats are beloved by all yet to this day. Blessed be your name, dear Icelandic ancestor. May God grant us your spirit, hard-working attitude, and kindness to your neighbors until the end of our days.
You could never return to see your beloved Ísland but generations later, I go back for you to see the ocean, feel the wind, and connect with cousins you never knew. Dear ancestor, I will tell your stories. I will remember you.
Thingvalla Cemetery, Pembina, North Dakota, USA