Trying to Settle In

Trying to assimilate into a completely different culture is so difficult. Before, we were all together in a foreign place. But now, we are apart, amongst the foreigners and at times, it can be so tense. More than ever, I feel like we are "starting over." I really can't tell what the locals here think about us. Leif says that it will get better especially as we begin to initiate in trading and establish our farm. With some of the merchandise Leif acquired, we purchased some land and have begun "settling" in as best as we can. One day, as Leif went into town, I was thinking about my family. I wished so badly that my brother and sister in law were here. I often times wonder where my family is and if they are okay. Last I heard, my Father, Mother, LjúfR, and Snotra are still in Viksfjord but apparently some of my cousins and uncles have journeyed across the ocean to a place called York. Apparently, Leif received word that there are vikings there who have been given a huge amount of land due to a treaty made by King Alfred and King Guthrum. I guess many of these vikings are no longer pagan but Christians yet still have been raiding occasionally in the East and North. I didn't believe this at first, but then Leif handed me a coin that he had acquired during one of his trading efforts. The coin had St. peter on it but then had Thor's hammer and a Viking sword on it! I couldnt' believe it. Apparently, there are other vikings trying to assimilate into other cultures as well! I found myself wondering how much those vikings in the West are fitting in. Are they going to the point of burying their own dead in Christian graveyards? Are they keeping their traditional names or even giving non-Norse places Viking names? Are Viking women still wearing Norse garments or are they, like me, dressing more like our local neighbors to try to fit in. I don't know. It is such a different time now and days. I have even begun wondering if my child will be a true Norse baby if he is born in Novgorod. I guess we will just have to see.