Sister time will be taken whenever it’s available

By: 
Miriam Nelson
News Editor

I’m so thankful I have a sister I like to spend time with and am grateful we’re only three hours away from each other.

We recently went on a little adventure to Minneapolis. Having discussed many options, like driving separately, or meeting up in Eau Claire, we eventually decided she should come home to Wittenberg and we’d drive together from here.

Note: my siblings moved away from home years ago, but I still refer to Nelson Manor as “home” for them. I’m almost certain they appreciate it and if not, at least they’re too kind to correct me!

Coming “home” takes more sacrifice on her part than on mine since she needs to drive three hours out of her way. The upside is we get to spend the time to and from Minneapolis to ourselves, uninterrupted and set our own leisurely pace.

We were heading up to see the eighth rendition of those crazy church basement ladies in the musical production of “Hark the Basement Ladies Sing!” and to prepare ourselves, we listened to Christmas music all the way. Who knew there were so many versions of “Jingle Bells?” Yikes.

There’s a cheese place we like to shop at in Thorp, so we always allow time for that. Why live in Dairyland if you’re not going to enjoy the bounty it provides? I love how they’ve made the store/restaurant/farm a destination. I love even more that Nueske’s and Country Fresh Meats have products there.

For some reason, I take great pride in seeing our local products at other destinations. It’s like an invitation to come visit our area.

My sister and I are very different in some ways. She’s thoughtful, organized and methodical, and I’m more of a fly by the seat of my pants, life is a big stage for improv kind of gal. Since we had declared this day our adventure day, we veered off the beaten path to see what downtown Boyd looks like. We learned a lot – there’s a beautiful Victorian home just as you enter Boyd. We also learned we hadn’t missed much by not seeking out downtown Boyd on our many travels past it.

We got to our destination in time to have a leisurely lunch at a favorite restaurant across the street from the theater. As luck would have it, we ran into my friend Janet Letnes Martin, one of the authors of the material that sparked the Church Basement Ladies musicals. Had we stuck with our original plan to stay overnight we probably would have had just a few minutes to spend with her at the party after the show, sharing her with the rest of the audience.

One thing my sister and I share is our sense of humor. Some might offer that we are both easily amused — I’ll not deny that. We are also not easily offended, so that covers a lot of humor territory. The very best thing about hanging out with my sister is not the shows we see, the places we go or even the people we meet. The best thing is the time spent together, being goofy, solving the world’s problems, and sharing dreams.