Saga Connections

Story-telling is deeply embedded in Icelandic culture. We can imagine families huddled around the hearth on a cold winter evening enraptured by the escapades of Thor and Loki. The Icelandic people also told stories of everyday courage and hope, weaving them into a rich cultural tapestry of poetry, literature, art and music. Every generation added to this tapestry. Our Icelandic ancestors brought this rich cultural heritage to this wild land, and over the years have added colourful threads, unique and emblematic, of being Icelandic-Canadians.  These are our ‘saga connections’.

The ICCT has decided to host a series of seminars for us to learn about and celebrate our Icelandic-Canadian heritage. We have two directions: one is to have seminar presentation from writers, artists and other professionals on topics of interest and the other is to collect and share our personal family memories. We all have stories to share.

Upcoming Events

Our first webinar for the 2024 season will be coming up on Thursday, March 21st, 2024, at 7:30 pm EST and features Professor Julie Salverson and her book “Lines of Flight: An Atomic Memoir.”

Details below. Registration HERE. This event will be hosted over Zoom.

About Saga Connections:

Julie Salverson is a Professor of Drama at Queen’s University, Kingston, and an Adjunct Professor at the Royal Military College of Canada. She is an author, playwright, producer, and community animator who works with groups to overcome trauma and enhance resiliency through the exchange and development of stories. Julie discovered the story of a group of Dene (who lived on the shores of the Great Bear Lake where uranium was mined for the 1945 atomic bombs) who had gone to Japan to apologize for their actions. In her book, Salverson traces the journey of the uranium from Canada to New Mexico and onto Japan.

Along the way, she examines the impact on the communities. Amazon reviewer comments how, “Questions of forgiveness, and the blurry lines between victim and perpetrator are addressed in a way that offers healing, but no simple answers. The result is unexpected beauty and hard-won insights that ripple through this narrative like stones dropped on still water as Salverson charts the influence nuclear arms have had on her own life and the lives of those touched by the various traumas of war, atomic or otherwise.” Salverson takes the reader on a journey from despair to hope and connection.

Julie is the granddaughter of the famous Icelandic-Canadian writer Laura Goodman-Salverson. She is currently working on a biography of her father, in which her grandmother features, and we may have the chance to hear a little about this upcoming book.

Planning is underway for future events for this third season of Saga Connections. Suggestions are welcome!

Donations

References

Click here for references and further reading material on our Saga topics

Information about Past and Future Seminars

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