Winds Across the Northern Prairie

Book Overview

The book, "Winds across the Northern Prairie," is a life story of one individual growing up on the Northern Prairies of North Dakota. This individual is only one of many thousands of individuals born on the Northern Prairie during this time frame from the mid-1940 to the mid-1960's.

Growing Up on the Prairie

We were called Baby Boomers, and the towns we grew up in were at their peaks in population and the town businesses were thriving. Some people called these times the good times. We learned to make our fun, as we did not have cell phones, computers, or even TVs at first. No one was there to help organize our baseball games or tell us how to play kick-the-can during the early evening hours. We kids gathered together and organized our own fun, learning how to negotiate our own rules.

Living in a farming and ranching community, we also learned how to work hard and to play hard. We were told to address our seniors as Mr. and Mrs. with respect and to do what we were told to do. Responsibility was learned early in life even if we did not know we were learning it. It was something we just grew up with.

Weather and Seasons

Weather on the Northern prairie was something we learned to accept. The Wind blew hard in every direction on the compass. Some of the seasons were too long and others were too short. Sometimes, we just missed a whole season altogether. Winters were long and cold, and the cold winds made the snow go sideways into high drifts of solid hard snow.

Living on the open prairie was a blessing for me. Learning the hunting sports with my Father gave me a whole different view of the wide-open prairies of the Missouri Coteau. Most people felt the prairies were a lot of wide-open spaces of nothing, but for me, I found beauty, serenity, and peace.

Changing Times

Times were about to change, and did change, as we grew up. Due to droughts, reduced crop prices, increasing costs to operate, increase of land values, government programs paying farmers not to grow their crops, or just getting tired of working hard and not making a living, people started to move off the land. In small towns, the ripple effect caused businesses to start to close and the populations in these small towns started to decline rapidly.

This is when the youth of North Dakota became the top export for our state. We were given the opportunity for a good education and taught to be dependable hard workers. Being considered responsible individuals made us a valued commodity to be hired for good paying jobs from businesses outside North Dakota.

Reflections and Memories

The memories I have are left to read in this book, but as time goes by, even these memories will be fading away for good. I hope as you read it, it will bring your own memories back to you. I hope those memories will make you smile of a time long ago.