Caddie Woodlawn

We have a family tradition.

Every time we travel home from a funeral in WI we stop at Caddie Woodlawn's home place.
We started this 20+ years ago after Grandpa Ben's funeral. Somewhere we have a picture of
Jeremy, Evan, Deanne and Jorgan posing beside a wooden fence and soon - very soon - I will
scan it into this computer and show you what they looked like so long ago.

The next time we stopped was after Grandma Christina's funeral. We posed everyone for more
pictures. We were going to get school pictures to give away. They are in an envelope in a box
packed away with my good intentions.

This past Tuesday Mom and I headed west on Hwy 29. In Menominee we turned south on
Hwy 25. I kept watching for a brown historical marker that would tell me where to turn. This
busy road with trucks and cars speeding along is very different than the road that went past
Caddie's house all those years ago.

The little white house shaded by the surrounding trees has seen many changes since 1864.
You can read all about her and her family in the books, Caddie Woodlawn and Magical Melons,
written by Carol Ryrie Brink

One of these days I will pack a lunch and drive to WI on a warm summer day. I hope I can hike
to Chimney Bluffs and explore there. So far every time we've stopped we had some reason
we had to hurry away.

This time was no different. We were on the way home after yet another funeral. We are at a stage
in life when our family reunions are not planned but hastily thrown together because someone we love has gone on to a Heavenly home. This time my mother's brother went on ahead of us.
I can picture Ray visiting with his dad, my Grandpa Jason.

And as so often happens, when one goes on ahead, God gives us another family member.
My niece and her husband welcomed a little boy named Jason Emerson to their home.
He was born on Monday morning . . . 
The same day as Ray's funeral.

We have seen pictures of Jase and his delighted brothers, Jensen and Julian.
Maybe some day they will be racing up and down the trails at Caddie Woodlawn's park.

February ~ 1978 Maranatha Bible School

"What were you doing when you turned 17?"

Krysta asked me this on the morning of her 17th birthday.

My memories had to back up -------------------------------

   Krysta was amazed when I told her I was at Maranatha

Bible School.  Yes, they let 16 year olds go to Maranatha way back

in the long ago days.  Now students are asked  to stay home an extra

year and grow up a bit more before attending for the first time.


Just a teensy tiny history lesson here -- 

The grade school in Lansing MN was leased in the summer/fall of 1977.

There were a lot of renovations made and plans went forward to start

Maranatha Bible School. 

There were two three week terms in the winter of 1978.

I still remember visiting Deanne at Maranatha one evening in 2008

for an end of the term dorm party. I did some math in my head.

 I was wildly startled to figure out she was in Bible School

thirty years after I was there.

So many things change -- so many things stay the same.

Same dorm parties

Same skits with a few new ones added

Same laughter

Mothers and daughters stretching and growing and learning together.