I was reading Sahdona’s Letters to Solitaries in Syriac this morning and came across the noun tarahytha’ (mind, conscience, opinion, doctrine) which is derived from the verbal root rahah meaning to reconcile, to sense. It’s used a lot in Syriac texts referring to that which constitutes the essence of a person. Very rich, to be sure, especially when used with the verb from which it is derived.

This morning was remarkably calm. To take it in, at 7.30 I drove to a nearby park-like area with paths by the sea. So there was Mt. Esja, Reykjavik’s faithful companion, quite close or closer than downtown Reykjavik itself. The summit of this tabletop mountain was shrouded in clouds which deposited a light coating of snow. As typical of these northern climes, you could reach out and touch it, that’s how clear the atmosphere was. I’ve noted this on occasion and am impressed each time simply because you don’t find it elsewhere. Besides, it was a day without the fairly constant wind.

National elections are late next week, and the airwaves are filled with political campaigning. I don’t follow this much simply because no matter who gets into power, a coalition government is formed which keeps things pretty much the same. However, this time around there’s some anxiety that a party wanting to come into power—and it stands a 50/50 chance—wants to remove some subsidiaries for the elderly. Part of the reason, I gather, is that the economy is booming. Yet the elderly form a substantial voting block. How it affects the nation is a stronger krona in the fact of (weaker) foreign currencies. I don’t advise following this blog to keep up on Icelandic politics, just a few general impressions…