Longyearbyen

Over fifteen years ago, in the summer month of June, we sit in a crowded restaurant serving fish and alcohol. The crowd is boisterous; voices buzz, alien chattering that both intrigues and isolates. It might be late or it might be early. The Arctic summer sun never moves far and on the Norwegian archipelago of Svalbard you can never be sure of the time. The sun neither falls nor rises, neither departs nor returns. In the summer, it merely shines.

The town is Longyearbyen – an apt name. Svalbard has two times: dark and light. On October 25th every year the sun dips below the mountains behind Longyearbyen and will not return for four months. When it returns on March 8th, the townspeople – only about 1500 of them – celebrate its return. How wonderful to worship something that can be seen and can be felt. Or maybe not.