I enjoy driving through downstate Illinois this time of year when farmers are planting in the fields. It means spring has arrived and reminds me of riding on my grandfather’s tractor as a kid. It gives me a sense of optimism. Farming is an annual gamble. A lot of time and money goes into putting a crop in the field. There could be a drought, or a flood, or tariffs could drive down the price of corn and soybeans, and farmers could lose money. It takes faith to keep farming…
In my last note, I wrote to you about running track, and some people asked if I did the “field” part of track and field. The short answer: Yes, but there was room for improvement. I think I was the tallest fifth grader when I went out for the track team. I had long arms. My dad was tall, and his dad was tall. Coach knew this and decided I should throw discus. Sure, I was skinny, but his logic was that I would grow, get stronger, and with my…
When I was a kid, the sign outside my hometown read “Gifford 800.” My eighth-grade class at Gifford Grade School was about 24 kids. And we were a big class. So it’s no surprise I didn’t have a lot of choices of sports to play. In the fall, the only option was baseball. In the winter, basketball. In the spring, track and field. I wasn’t that good at baseball, but I enjoyed being part of a team with my friends. I always loved basketball and didn’t mind the drills and…
I recently read a description of an outhouse: A small building a hundred feet from your house that’s a hundred feet too far in the winter, and a hundred feet too close in the summer. This reminded me of a conversation I had with Dad a few years ago. I grew up with indoor plumbing. Every friend I knew had indoor plumbing. My father did not until he was about 8. Before then, he had to use an outhouse and bed pans. This shocked me. Although I knew indoor plumbing…
Last fall, I had the honor of attending an event for the 150th anniversary of a family-owned business. Oswald’s Pharmacy in Naperville has been in the same family for six generations. At an event marking the milestone, a family member said the business used to be open 365 days a year. He calculated that it was open 22,000 straight days before a later generation finally decided to close on Christmas. That tale of dedication got me thinking about my family. For many years, they operated a dairy farm. Cows don’t…