Mayhem and Magic: Where I'm From (It's a meme about childhood/families, kind of!)

First of all, thanks to those who commented recently. I love participation!

Mary's Owlhaven has been collecting "Where I'm From" essays. Writing your own is "a fun exercise in learning about the small things that give us our identities with the place or places we are from."

There is a set format to start with, and you fill in the blanks. Kind of like Mad Lib, only not funny. (Here is the original.)

So here's mine (ahem) :

I am from the picnic table in the dining room, from a box of Lucky Charms on birthdays, and Pop Tarts for breakfast on camping trips.

I am from the big green house by the park with a swing set in the back yard.

I am from laying on the dock, feeling both the hot sun and the cool breeze off the lake, from muggy Minnesota evenings, passing one can of pop between all of us sitting on lawn chairs.

I am from the oak tree by the driveway, from windmills turning slowly on the hill with corn and bean fields rustling below.

I am from waking up with a present at the foot of my bed every birthday morning, watching "Wild America" together on Sunday night, and Dad telling stories as we fell asleep in a dark tent.

I am from stubbornness, corny jokes, sarcastic tongues, and soft hearts. I am from Vivian and Lester and Doris.

I am from keeping our disagreements within the family and staying loyal to one another. I am from working until we're seventy five. I am from ice fishers and waterskiers and a mom who quit her teaching job when I was born.

From "Don't sweat the small stuff" and "Knee high by the fourth of July" and "You are my sunshine" and "Good night. See you in the morning. Love you. Sleep tight."

I am from never missing church on Sunday morning unless you were throwing up, AWANA on Wednesday night, potlucks with hotdish and jello salad, and off-key Christmas programs where parents crowded the front with cameras.

I am from Duluth, Minnesota. I am from Norway and Sweden and Holland. I am from popcorn, cheese, and apples on game night and chicken kiev on Christmas day.

I am from picking dandelions from the yard for 1 cent each, and from standing at the edge as waves crashed against the rocks, getting wet and freezing cold on purpose. I am from Great Grandpa Olsen teasing, "Who will eat the stems?" while we sat in the sun on the nursing home patio. I am from a purple bike with a cool banana seat and saving my allowance for a Cabbage Patch doll. I am from the whole family singing carols in the living room while Suzanne played piano. I am from Dad quietly carrying us to bed after a long car trip home. I am from magic shows where we told the audience, "Now just close your eyes for a second!"

I am from hundreds of photos stacked in mom's hope chest, slideshows stored in carousels, extra hard drives just for pictures and video, and a cookbook of family recipes. I am from sparkling suncatchers in the windows and Florence's instruments displayed in the dining room. I am from never getting rid of books, so that I remember a hundred different pieces of childhood just by looking at the shelves.