This day in history.

     It was the spring that would never come and our first living near the Canadian border, where North Dakota, Saskatchewan and Manitoba meet. It was also a winter of exceptional snowfall. In March my father died and I remember seeing all the windbreaks drifted full of snow, as I flew North Central Airlines home for the funeral. April came and still no thaw as we wondered about our new home in North Dakota.
   Our small town, Mohall, had it's own 22 bed hospital and the town was also the Renville County seat. On April 9, I drove Joanne the 8 blocks to the hospital and a few hours later Lars Allan was born. He had a good start at 10 lbs. and 24 inches.  As the only baby in the nursery he was the object of some attention, delivered by Dr. Walter Gokavi, who permitted me to be present at birth with this admonition, "If you faint you're on your own because I will be occupied."   (I didn't faint.)
    Five days later, when mother and son came home, all the snow was gone.  The temperature had soared to 80 degrees so with the rapid snow melt most of the county bridges were also gone. The city of Minot, through which the Mouse River flows, suffered severe flooding.
     Now I'm fortunate to have him living, with his wife and two daughters, near me in South Minneapolis. Before his move to Minneapolis he'd lived in Ohio, Norway, New York City, Cambodia, Austria, Washington, D.C., and last in Chicago.  When I was working to help establish the organization now known as ISAIAH, I never imagined that he'd one day work for it.
     It's a great blessing to have him, with his family near me, as is my daughter, Lisa, with whom I'm staying.

Takk for alt,

Al

Lars with his daughter, Sella.