I think it comes as no surprise to those who know me that I read a lot of books as a kid. I had one of the first white plastic library cards at the Jackson Public Library. My sisters and I were allowed to walk the 5+ blocks to the Orange Street Library, a tiny L-shaped haven that wrapped itself around Di-Mon's Floral and Gifts. Every two weeks or so in the summer, we gathered our books, our Burger King kids coupons (free fries and burgers!) and replenished our stacks.
For the summer of 1978 and 79, my stacks were all Little House books. I loved Laura at my age in On the Banks of Plum Creek, her in a violet dress dancing on the roof of the dugout.
Like any good junkie, Plum Creek wasn't enough, and I devoured the rest of the series.
She is the reason I knew what a fascinator was before Kate Middleton made them all the rage.
She's the reason I know old west slang like "all the rage" to describe something that is very in fashion.
She is the reason I like tea and horehound candy.
She is the reason one of the first things I did after graduating from college was become a member of the Laura Ingalls Wilder Home Association.
She also infused me with a marked degree of spirit and resolve. Independence. A sense of adventure. Calling up bravery in the face of fear. And the desire to claim my own "Almanzo", a hero that I could love and be a partner with, equally.
Most important, she's the reason I love to create.
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