I recently had the chance to visit the city of Reykjavik—Iceland’s clean and beautiful capital—as well as its surrounding landscapes. My traveling companions (Renny and Elaine) and I decided to embark on a self-guided tour of the country using the web site “Guide to Iceland,” conceptualized and managed by Travelshift CEO Siggi Gudbrandsson.
The web site itself is a wealth of information for tourists like us; we found everything from tour packages, local guides, car rentals, hotel partners and tour information without having to speak to someone over the phone. Gisli Eyland, the business development officer of Travelshift, shared that more partners, including airlines, are interested in placing their products on their web site, allowing people to access a hub of information about Iceland—in six different languages, to boot.
Over the course of five days, I was able to talk to Icelandic people. Indeed, aside from being one of the safest places here on earth, Iceland has some of the friendliest people around. Even though Iceland is now off my bucket list, I would love to come back someday, perhaps during the more comfortable summer months. While I learned a lot about Iceland through several web sites, I think I learned more by just talking to locals and actually going through the Icelandic experience: driving its scenic roads in snowy and windy conditions, savoring its langoustine lobster and Viking beer, and appreciating the grandeur of its Geysir, Gulfoss and Glacier lagoon.
In traveling to any destination, it would be best if we are familiar with the little things that can help us in our journey. As I walk in my life’s journey with faith, I am glad to have met my pastor friends Niels, Gary and Ernie, all of whom take the time and effort to guide me in my readings. While the Bible is not the easiest reference to understand, there is a suggested way of doing it. Similar to Siggi’s site, the Bible is where believers discover anything and everything about their destination. Its readers can opt to have a dedicated tour guide (a priest or pastor), join a tour bus (a parish or congregation), or take a self-guided tour (self Bible study). I learned a lot by just opening the book every chance I got. But I think I learned more about the Word by actually going through an ongoing and transformational experience: driving through life’s bumpy roads amid hope and sadness, savoring life’s little blessings in moments of bliss and pleasure and appreciating how circumstances, providential as they may seem, manage to help us survive toward our destination—not death, but of salvation.
We live in an imperfect world, one where happiness can be elusive. But in one of the recent sermons of Pope Francis, he said: “But use the tears to irrigate tolerance. Use your losses to train patience. Use your mistakes to sculpt serenity. Use pain to plaster pleasure. Use obstacles to open windows of intelligence.” In Iceland, especially during the winter months, people can easily become melancholic as the weather offers barely four hours of sunshine. Seeing a glimpse of what it would be like to live in Iceland, I can honestly say that it would be difficult for me to live in Iceland alone. Similarly, as we take our journey in life, some of us will struggle with work, family or love, but it is important to remember that we are never alone. I know this because Romans 14:7-8 says, “For none of us lives for ourselves alone, and none of us dies for ourselves alone. If we live, we live for the Lord; and if we die, we die for the Lord. So, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord.”
Pope Francis ended his message by saying, “Never give up on people who love you. Never give up on happiness, for life is an incredible show.” I know there are a few people who love me. Whether their love is true or, otherwise, I will not give up on them. The show has just begun.
For questions and comments, please e-mail me at sbmison@gmail.com.