A song for every season...
In fact you almost have to stuff your ears with cotton wool if you don't want to listen to old Danish poetry. "Welcome here, new year of grace" (Vær velkommen, Herrens år) blasts from every television and radio set just after midnight on New Year's Eve and there are special songs for Shrovetide and others for Easter. On Midsummer Eve we gather faithfully around the bonfire and join in to sing "This country we love" (Vi elsker vort land). And there's no Christmas Eve without the whole family joining hands to dance round the Christmas tree while trying to remember the words of the hymns "Bright and glorious is the sky" (Dejlig er den himmel blå) or "A babe is born in Bethlehem" (Et barn er født i Bethlehem).
...And every age
We are not just reminded that Danish poetry is alive by the changing seasons, it follows us throughout our lives. We don't mind skipping church festivals, but for family celebrations and the suchline many a guest has tried his or her hand at writing a song for the occasion that fits the melody of "Here I stand with tinkling bells galore" (Jeg er havren, jeg har bjælder på). And for most people a wedding is not complete without "How sweetly beckons the path ahead" (Det er så yndigt at følges ad) being sung.
Here and now
Poems are never better than when sung or read aloud. This is also true of Ivan Malinowski's little poem about gnats dancing over the water level of the fjord. Even if you are sitting in front of your pc at this very moment, try to whisper these lines:
and silently pecks an invisible beak
at the mirror's film of wind and salt
soon bursts all
Dorthe Sondrup Andersen is a Master of Arts of Comparative Literature and an author and writer on cultural affairs. Her books include "The Golden Age without the Gilt" ("Guldalder uden forgyldning") (People's Press, 2004).