I used to think that everybody was adopted from outer space
That before we were born
we were just little seeds floating around in the sky
waiting for someone to come and get us
The selection process was random
And there's no rhyme or reason as to who our parents would be
In a way I was right
because our chance to be born inches on our parents' meeting
My parents met completely by chance
due to a chain of events that was set in motion many years ago
in a small apartment in Copenhagen
In this apartment
there lived a Danish poet called Kasper Jorgensen
Kasper was so worried about running out of ideas
that he often could not think of anything to write
He therefore went to see Dr. Murk
who specialised in this problem
Why don't you go on a holiday?
Get some fresh air
Where can you go on a holiday if you don't have any money
And you don't speak French?
What about Norway
it's cheap and they're practically Danish
Kasper began to search Norwegian holiday posibilities
At the libraby he came across a book called Scandinavian Confusion
about famous Swedes who were acutally Norwegian
and famous Norwegian who were actually Danish
And so on...
This is how he discovered the Norwegian writer Sigrid Undset
who was originally Danish
She had written the ethic novel Kristin Lavransdatter
and won the nobel prize for literarure
Kristin Lavransdatter is the story of Kristin
who was engaged to Simon
But Kristin falls in love with Erlend
And she breaks up with Simon and marries Erlend
against her father's will
She regrets this fateful decision for the rest of her life.
And never forgives herself
No matter how many times she walks bare foot and pregnent
pilgram to the Nidadros Cathedral
This novel so profoundly moved Kasper
that he wrote a letter to Sigrid Undset
Dear Mrs. Undset, I am a Danish poet
May I please come and visit you in Norway for inspiration
Best regards
Casper Jorgensen
Dear Mr. Jorgensen
I could use a bit inspiration myself nowadays
Please come and visit me anytime
Best regards
Sigrid Undset
And so it was Kasper went on holiday to Norway just as Dr. Murk described
Kasper went to the nearest farm to ask for shelter
I am a great admirer of Sigrid Undset and I'm on my way to ?? to visit her
What a coincidence
my family is related to her
my third cousin's brother in law
was Sigrid Undset's great uncle's niece's husband's grandfather
So your family was originally from Danmark?
Well, perhaps we're all originally from Danmark
Kasper was offered food and shelter until the rain stopped
??often happens in Norway
the rain never really stopped
Kasper did not mind at all,
for Ludenberg had a beautiful daughter called Enigberg
Who attended to the chickens
and romantically gaze the stars above the farm
The summer romance was in full bloom
then Kasper wrote a poem
Enigberg you've changed my life
Enigberg please be my wife
she explained that although she would like to marry him
She was actually already engaged to the farmer
across the valley
He was the son of her father's best friend
and a well respected member of the community
And August wedding was planned
This is exactly like when Kristin Lavransdatter can't marry Erlend
because she's engaged to Simon
But then she breaks up with him and marries Erlend anyway
inspite of her father's stern objections
Not exactly
For Enigberg had also read Kristin Lavransdatter
and knew that disobeying one's father
would lead to a life lived in the shadows of guilt and regret
Enigberg gave Kasper a lock of her hair
and promised that she would not cut it until they were reunited
He forgot all about
his intended vistit to Sigrid Undset
And returned to Danmark
Heart-broken and empty-handed
but the lock of his beloved's hair
How can I write when I feel so sad
Some people think that's the best time
Really
Kasper tried to write
but nobody cared about his sad poetry
He reread Kristin Lavransdatter again and again
as if cure for his broken heart
could be found somewhere between the 1500 pages
Enigberg was unhappy too
when she regret that she had not disobeyed her father and married Kasper
You'd better cut your hair
before I trip in it and twist my ankle
Said her husband
There're worst things in life than a twist ankle
answered Enigberg
and then something much worse did happen
Enigberg immediately wrote a letter to Kasper
telling him that she was now free to marry him
But Kasper never recieved the letter
And Enigberg waited in vain for his reply
Meanwhile Enigberg's hair grew and grew
She decided to employ little children in the neighbourhood
to comb and brush for her
One of them there was a little girl who was exceptionally good
at arranging Enigberg's hair
and complicated braid and knots and elegant beehives
Her name was Veslamei
And she became Enigberg's favourite hair dresser
Enigberg life past uneventfully for years
until the day that Sigrid Undset died
you must go to the funeral
why?
because she was your relative
but she was Danish
when a relative dies you go to the funeral
whether she's Danish or not
said Veslamei
Kasper was grief-stricken by the death of his favoutirte author
You must go to the funeral
But it's in Norway
Just go
Kasper did not like being reminded ??
But he went to see ?? funeral anyway
And was glad he did because there
he was finally reunited with Enigberg
Great, now I can finally cut my hair
Are you nuts?
I love your hair
Kasper quickly became living proof
that some poets are better off be happy than sad
He published a poetry collection called
Joy and Happiness
Which was translated to all Scadinavian languages
and became the best seller of ??
Enigberg was happy too
but she was going to increasingly concerned about her split ends
When Kasper one day tripped in her ungraded hair and broke his thumb
She saw an opportunity
She called Veslamei who was
no longer a little girl but a young woman
She understood the urgency of the situation
and jumped on the next train to Oslo
to take the ferry to Copenhagen
The only available seat was next to a young man
who was reading Kasper's Joy and Happiness
His name was Pete
and he told Veslamei
that he was going to Copenhagen for inspiration
and to meet Kasper Jorgensen who was his favourite poet
That's quite a coincidence
said Veslamei
it remains to be said
that Veslamei get Enigberg a flattering haircut
That Pete visit to Copenhagen was very inspiring
That Kasper's thumb healed nicely
and last but not least
That Pete and Veslamei fell in love with each other
Some time later
they became my parents
If it had not been for the Danish poet
and Sigrid Undset
the rainy summer in Norway
the slippery barn plant
the careless mailman
a hungry goat
a broken thumb
and a crowded train
my parents might have never met at all
and who knows
I might still be a little seed floating around in the sky
waiting for someone to come and get me
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