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In the beginning, he walked alone, briefly stopping at
Bakkahella, at Doktaragrund, up above the library, or
simply whenever he saw a door ajar. He prayed an Our
Father, blessed the household, and then sang a verse.
But after Anna Sofie and Henrietta Løbner, mother and
daughter, joined him, some other poor souls turned out as
well. For the most part, they sang “Fare, World, Farewell” by
the Danish hymn-writer, Thomas Kingo. They sang it to the
sarabande-melody, and their swaying tread gave the group
a solemn and peculiar appearance.
No poet has made a greater impact on the Faroese national
spirit than Thomas Kingo, and when Professor Christian
Matras translated “Fare, World, Farewell” to Faroese in 1929,
he walked the same narrow streets as hr. Hans before him,
humming to himself, in an effort to instill the unique
Kingo-musicality into the verses.
The group also sang the more contemporary and milder
hymn by Oehlenschläger, “Teach Me, Oh Wood, to Fade
Glad Away,” and when they passed the house in Geil, Tóvó
sometimes stood in the door and watched and listened to
the little wandering church.