Salka Valka by Halldor Laxness

On Sundays and at various other times when Salka Valka was not at work, she would go for a walk and visit the wife of Magnús Book. This couple had seven young children- they had lost four- and had little more to live on than God's blessing, for no one would give Magnús a place on his boat; he was far from burly and had a reputation for shirking hardship, and was even passed over for work ashore, when possible. At the same time, he had bad credit, but would not accept poor relief even if he could, because he was eccentric and opinionated. His main interest was in bookbinding, and he had made a name for himself in that art. Sometimes folk in distant places sent him big books whose spines were in need of mending. He was also well versed in philosophy. His wife had been ill for quite some time, with a stomach ailment that was continually worsening. At first, the illness manifested itself in attacks that were relatively mild, but then it got to the point where she had difficulty keeping down what she ate. Finally came the consuming pain, from which she rarely had any peace. Still, she managed to get to her feet from time to time and clean the floor, which was one of the chores that her elderly mother never felt up to anymore on account of the rheumatism in her back and the edema in her legs. The doctor, who by now had practically forgotten his own name, asked, with all due respect, what the cardinal directions were called. Someone said: "East, west, south. " Then he let his eyelids droop, bowed, and smiled: "Precisely. That's it. To the south, the sooner, the. " And so on.

Some took this to mean that he thought the woman should go south to Reykjavík for an operation, because it was clear that the drops he had prescribed were no longer helping. But it was as Bogesen had always said, "If our doctor cannot heal us here in the village, it is of little use wasting money on trips to the capital, for in such cases, we are already at death's door. " So the woman stayed put, and at night, in calm weather, her moans could be heard from the street.