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My daughter’s Brownie Troop embarked on an outdoor excursion one February evening in Minnesota, about 15 years ago. We were on a weekend retreat, and I’d signed up to build a fire in an outdoor fire ring. Meanwhile the other moms would take the girls to a pond for a curling match. Arriving at the…
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By Jackson Harkness, Age 11 Trees were zipping past me a mile a minute. Everything was a blur. I was going really fast, too fast to stop. Where was the blue run my parents were talking about? I was really starting to worry. I started gaining speed. Now I was even having trouble turning. My…
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One of my most memorable childhood gifts came when I was five years old on Christmas Eve in 1961. Dressed in my “Sunday best” outfit at my grandparents’ farm house. This picture captures my memory. But irony and coincidence also lurk invisibly in the background of this image. We had just feasted on Grandma Esther’s…
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—Lois Storlie’s Reflections, curated and written by her daughter, Jean Storlie. I really liked growing up on the farm. It was a simple life, but my dad and grandpa were big teases. They stirred up mischeif and kept me on my toes! Working in the Field My dad taught me how to drive the team…
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Coming out of COVID lockdown last spring, we bought two kayaks as a new way to experience the many lakes and waters of Minnesota. All summer, family members took turns using the kayaks. Our favorite outings involved exploring local stretches of the Mississippi River north of Minneapolis. Capturing a final hint of summer in Minnesota,…
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The ticktock of the clock echoed in my ears with each passing second. I’d been silently reciting driving rules like a broken record. It was my sixteenth birthday. At 12:45, my dad picked me up from school and took me to the DMV to take my drivers test. Anxiety surged through my body like an…
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Our kids begged, “Dad, can you tell us ‘The Blueberry Story’?” Jay used to spin a bedtime tale about picking blueberries in the north woods of Wisconsin. It was loosely based on an episode that occurred when his uncle, as a young boy, had fallen asleep in the woods when his family was picking blueberries.…
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My story about writing Once Upon an Innovation is more like a chapter book than a simple narrative. Each leg of the journey involved creative challenges, obstacles to overcome, and lessons learned. There were many twists and turns along the way. Reflecting on this journey, I realize that at the same time I wrote Once Upon an Innovation…
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My mom, Lois, was a 1950s housewife with three pre-school kids living in La Crosse, Wisconsin. Lois, a frugal shopper, spotted an ad in the local paper for 50¢ watermelons. Shazam, she was on a mission! When my dad got home for lunch, she rushed out with their only car to take advantage of this…
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Two weeks ago, my sister sent me an email urging me to apply my sewing skills to make COVID-19 masks. At that point, I’d seen reports that the homemade masks inadequately protect healthcare professionals―and give the general public a false sense of security. So, I resisted (maybe I was slightly lazy, too). She pushed back.…
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