Home coming

Many years ago, a local family uprooted and went east. They left behind the oldest son who had just graduated and laid down some roots of his own, but they took the middle child and the youngest and set out for North Dakota. This is the story of the youngest daughter.

She had just passed the fourth grade and was looking forward to summer when she got the news. They were packing up and going to the middle of oil country. They were going to live in a place called Wildrose. Population, not much.

As the years went by, she dreamed of returning home, but the cards never panned out. Soon her middle brother graduated and headed back to the Coulee. (He would return to Wildrose a few years later but Washington has called him home again.) She was now an only child in the town whose population was shrinking every year. But she was managing and still dreaming of the streets of Electric City.

Then life happens. Life in the form of graduation, a boy and a job. The boy became a father and roots started taking hold as well. But as life usually does, it keeps going even as you’re dreaming. The job grew into a really good job, a second child emerged rapidly followed by separation and a shaking of the roots. The dream still held on for dear life.

A big change came as a hero stepped into her life and things seemed to look better. A real man walked out of the oil rig smoke, and soon a third baby and a big move were on the horizon. No not yet. A huge opportunity presented itself, and New Mexico held that job for her. Soon the family was thriving in the desert, but it was the wrong desert for the dream.

But the dream started to take shape after a couple of vacations home over a few summers, and she started to taste the sweetness of home. Another graduation, this one from college by the hero, and plans started forming. There were some road bumps along the way. Covid delayed the wedding vows and then her job. Then in the final weeks of packing and loading, while the rest of the country enjoyed record heat, it poured rain in Albuquerque, New Mexico. So much that the wetness of boxes being loaded delayed the journey. But they got on the road against all odds. They were headed home.

It is unknown what exactly awaits them here in Coulee Country when they roll in, but one thing is for sure: There will be a smile on the face of a young girl as she fulfills a dream that she had as a child. As you read this, my sister and her family will be setting up camp somewhere as they wait for their dream home to become available. It does not matter what the home looks like either, because they will make it their own and fulfill the dream of a child returning home to live in Coulee Country.

So welcome home Aneeka, Colin, Gage, Kashtyn and Greyson. I am glad, honored and proud of your accomplishments and to have you as family. Let the adventures continue as we all make new memories. Love ya.