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these storms are no more than what they have often
experienced before, they can even remember the last time,
a year ago.
The First Winter Storm, on the other hand, is quite a
different matter.
It is violent every single time and makes its entrance with a
vengeance, they have never seen a storm like it, even
though this is also what happened last year. This is the
origin of the phrase ‘in living memory’, they have forgotten
just how it was, since they have no choice but to ride the
storm as best they can and erase it from their memories as
soon as possible.
Now they are in the midst of one of these, which has raged
with undiminished force for more than a day, with wisps of
yellow foam swirling above the island, rain as hard as hail
and spring tides that do not ebb. Hans has been out three
times to secure even things he didn’t consider it was
possible to secure. He has seen one of his sheep being
blown into the sea before he had time to lock the others in
the boathouse, they hadn’t been slaughtered yet and there
was nowhere else to put them, and inside he tethers them
to the færing boat which he also ties down, it is
unbelievable what men get into their heads when the First
Winter Storm strikes.