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"Just think," he said. "The younger generations will never know our dreams and our sorrows. When they visit the cemetery, they will read the names of those past and gone from us, but they will never know how they struggled in pain, sorrow, and joy to make a life in this new world. Vestmannaeyjar's Children will be as forgotten as the rose petals which fall to the earth at the first sign of winter." "They will not be forgotten, if you tell your story and leave it behind for them to read. Vestmannaeyjar's Children can live forever in the hearts of the many descendants left behind," Helga told him. Thus John began to tell his story, and Helga began to fill her notebooks. These pages have been his version of experiences he lived through with his grandmother, mother and father, and his two sisters. His wife, Emma Mariar, was a child of Denmark; and Freida was a child from Akranes, but they too, became part of John's family saga. John sorely missed his dear wife Freida; and like his sister Hannah, he grieved silently and alone. On the morning of May 24, 1951, his son Jule found him in his final, silent sleep. He died as he wanted to go. His father had been an invalid for many years, and John did not want this to happen to him. Although he had grown older, he had a sharp mind that did not succumb to senility, and he was strong in the faith. His passing was duly noticed by the God he had served so long and faithfully. If you listen in the silent moments of early dawn, you may well hear him singing, "My God and I will go for aye together; my God and I walk through the meadow's hue———." Vestmannaeyjar's Children have all come and gone. They all had their hardships, their shining moments in the sun, their great joys and sorrows, and their steadfast faith. They left a great heritage behind and their many descendents should pause and reflect on their great love and sacrifice. Families really are forever! Vestmannaeyjar's Children have all left us, but someday-yes someday, we will claim them as our Own. "Letters To My Grandchildren" |