www.davidhegg.org

July 22, 2012

Today it is one year since the terror attack in Norway July 22, 2011. The whole day different commemorative observations have gone on all over the country, which the largest TV stations have broadcasted continuously.

The whole year this terror attack has been talked about and written about from different perspectives in the media in Norway. Norway has developed a society where all have the right to express their opinions. Also those who only are a few individuals in the society, have the same right to express their thoughts. Therefore this terrorist has betrayed this agreement between the citizens in this country, where people can be far away from each other regarding their opinions, but they use their right to express why they think they are right. In this way people can learn from each other and develop their thoughts about how the society can be.

It was the government and the youth origination of the Workers' Party which were attacked. And the many young people who were killed and wounded on the youth camp, shows that a bottomless malice stands behind this attack.

The Workers' Party, or Labor Party, have a rose as their symbol. This rose is something I started to think about today. Why did someone want to destroy this symbol? After thinking about this for a while today, I remembered a Norwegian poem by Einar Skjæraasen, You shall not tread in the grass. Here I have translated this poem to English, I have just written English words for the Norwegian words quickly and easily. It is also music for this poem, written by Edvard Fliflet Bræin. Einar Skjæraasen has touched the Norwegian population in a strong way with many of his poems. In the Norwegian language this poet has strong words.

I think that this poem is about, that we shall not damage and destroy on or way through the life. We shall look after how valuable the world around us is. The small sprout, a chirp in the smallest throat, everything which flies, and springs, and grows; all the vulnerable wonderful life on the globe have strong value, but can easily be destroyed. The humans also are of that kind, something valuable, which is easy to destroy. Do not destroy something with such strong value.

You shall not tread in the grass

You shall not tread in the grass.
The small sprout must let be standing.
Speechless life has also a meaning
you have to see and think about.
On God's globe, and in his garden,
yourself is a little straw.

You shall not touch the nest,
the nest is a little bed.
Above thin babies the wagtail spread
out its wary, warm wing.
The chirp in the smallest throat.
shall be twittering over meadow.

You shall not set snare,
when you see a hare trace.
You shall look where you are going and esteem
everything which flies, and springs, and grows.
You are yourself a little weak one,
you need yourself a big brother.

Einar Skjæraasen 1954

July 22, 2012, David H. Hegg