Norway Man

Editor’s Note - Today’s edition of Coach Jeff’s Blog features guest blogger Lisa Byerley Gary.

The Winter Olympics in 1994 were held in Lillehammer, Norway. The home crowd, quite understandably, was especially excited about a speed skater named Johann Olav Koss.

Little Holly was experiencing her very first Olympics that year. She picked up on her dad’s excitement with the ceremony, the flags and the national anthems. We weren’t quite sure what she thought “countries” were. But she definitely understood that specific people belonged to specific countries, and that those matched with flags and with songs. She also picked up on the excitement of the crowd. She called Koss, who won three gold medals in those games, Norway Man.

In those days, national media showed medal ceremonies in their entirety. We saw lots of pageantry – so much pomp and circumstance. Holly loved it all. She collected miniature flags matching the ones she saw on TV.

What words were the people singing, she wanted to know?

We knew “The Star Spangled Banner,” of course, and her dad could help her with the Canadian anthem in both English and French. He even knew the words to the French national anthem.

The problem was Norway Man. We did not know the words to his song.

Holly, in her childlike confidence, still believed her parents knew all. The adults on TV were singing his song. They knew the words. Clearly, we were holding out on her.

In 1994, the World Wide Web was not yet common in Knoxville, Tennessee. Holly’s busy parents were holding down full-time jobs and taking care of her. Her dad was also teaching night classes. We never made that trip to the library that might have yielded words to the Norwegian national anthem.

Holly, with a toddler’s strong opinion on rules, order and the way the world ought to work, never quite forgave us for not teaching her the words to Norway Man’s song.

This year, Holly is enjoying her sixth Winter Olympics from her post as an English teaching assistant on the coast of France. She is watching the games with friends from several countries and with an adult’s perspective on how the world ought to work. And, if she so desires, she can summon the words to any song she might wish to learn in a matter of seconds through the marvel of modern technology.

Her dad and I, back in Knoxville, watch the flags rise and reminisce about one inquisitive little girl and her Olympic hero, Norway Man. 

LBG

Originally posted 2/17/2014