Here you can spend a short while with me, Ingveldur Eiriksdottir, where I will tell you a little something about my life
My name is Ingveldur Eiriksdottir and I´m from Iceland,
an little island in the north Atlantic.
In Iceland our last names are the name of our fathers' so I´m the daughter of Erik. Icelandic women keep their last names after they get married.
I´m a teacher in a small school, Ljósafossskoli,
which is about 70 km from the capital, Reykjavík.
I live near the school by a beautiful river
and three Hydro-electric Power Stations
Me
and then some more me
Family
Work
Interests
We are all part of something bigger and more important than just the material that our bodies are made of. Together we make the world that we live in. But it is not my intention to tell you about that family, - just my own - which is pretty big actually
I´m going to do my nine older brothers and sisters the honour of mentioning them first. It is as a matter of fact no coincidence that I used the words more important earlier. The youngest child of a group so big sometimes gets the feeling that those who are older are of greater calibre.
Whoever gave the child that idea?
Siblings
I´m the youngest child of Kristin Jonsdottir, born 5. 10. 1917, died 17. 02. 99 and Eirikur Julius Eiriksson born 22.07.1911 died 11.01.1987. My oldest brother Adalsteinn, works in the ministry of education, then is Jon, a professor with the university of Iceland, then comes the oldest girl Hildur who works at a hospital, Agusta is a nurse and lives in the north part of Iceland, Jonina is a teacher and librarian and is spending a year in Denmark now. Magnus designs fishing equipment that are in ships and Gudmundur is a building engineer. Asmundur is an electronics engineer and has his own company. Aldis is a teacher like me. My parents lost one boy who was the second oldest when he was quite young.
So being a teacher is in our genes - most of us have thought at one time or another and 5 of us are teaching today. My dad was a teacher and a priest. He was also a park ranger in the national park of Thingvellir
My life from then until now
I was born at Þingvellir (Thingvellir) a national park where my father was a park ranger. I spent my first 17 years there and I consider my youth one of my greatest fortunes. My father was a priest and a principal in west of Iceland before my family moved to Þingvellir.
I was in the same school I teach in now - it was a boarding school back then and I enjoyed it a lot. Even though I had to stay away from my parents for 5 days of the week - and I was only seven when I went for the first time.
From Þingvellir I moved to a little village called Selfoss - and I cried for a week because how evil my parents were to move to that horrid place - I wanted to move to - the capital or nowhere. So I would spend as little time at Selfoss I went to another boarding school and stayed there for two winters, but then Selfoss got a little better (mostly in my mind) and I graduated from the school there 1984.
1985 I saw a man with broad shoulders, big chest and the bluest eyes I had ever seen and I fancied him a lot. Later I fell in love with him because this good-looking man was also a good person. This man is Pall Skaftason born and raised in Selfoss.
We have two children. Ragnheidur our little miracle born. 03.01.89. She has taught us that difficulties are to conquer and if we can’t do that, then at least we should adjust to them. Ragnheidur is a hero she was born a hero and has showed her parents that the good thing in life should not be taken for granted.
Less than two years later, on 13.12. 90 a little blond boy arrived. He was given the name Adalasteinn. This little boy is in no way lesser miracle than his sister. We never seem to stop wondering about how great each birth of a healthy child is.
I’ve done a thing or two during the years, I was one of the last phone operator at a manual phone exchange….. or maybe I was one of the last manual phone operators?????
I've also worked at offices, in a bank and outdoors at Thingvellir.
I decided to be a teacher the first day I went to school, my teacher swept me off my feet. I went through school over the next 15 years or so determined to be one and I tried to get the education that would help me to be a good one. I was never in any doubt.
I teach in a small school and I like it very much - I think the size can be a great benefit if you concentrate on how you teach and one tries to find the solutions that can help to teach 2 or even 3 grades together.
My main interest is my work and I love it very much.
I like reading a lot and that is no wonder. My father collected books and when that ended he had 30.000 books that he gave to the county library at Selfoss. I read everything – I´m very fond of Icelandic literature and I cherish it very much, I also read American bestsellers, history, handbooks, just name it I read it all depending on the mood I´m in.
I also like bridge and I try to do as much of it as I can.
I’m trying to get into better shape as so many of us are, and I try to go as often as I can to Selfoss to swim. We here in Iceland are so lucky that we have hot water just about everywhere in the earth. So everywhere are pools. As most of you know that the original Geyser is in Iceland.
I also play golf – or at least I did it once, my husband is very active and I try to go several times over the summer.
My deepest passion now at the moment is Formula 1, and it is not an understatement to say that I’m in over my head. I like to drive and I’m always the one who drives, Pall is very happy about it since he thinks it is very boring. I like the speed in Formula 1, I like the strategy, the cars, the tracks, the whole lot. I got to know some people from all over the world that are also interested in Formula 1 and we share our views and interest. I think the Internet is a wonderful thing – until I get my phone bills.
