There's nothing on TV but reruns

and it's too hot outside

Jul 21, 2024

How many times did I whine this to my mother in the summer when I was a kid? I hear her answer in my head: go outside and play.

It’s July and I’m taking a two week hiatus so today I’m featuring three previous posts for new subscribers.

Now, go outside and play. Mom was right.

Lake of the Woods

Jill Swenson

September 17, 2023

Kakaygeesick was born on the southern shore of Lake of the Woods in what is now the state of Minnesota at its northernmost tip. He was one of three sons to Chief Ay Ash Wash. This one family lived here since at least 1795. When you look at a map of the waterways in the state of Minnesota, see the outline of the “chimney” at the top. The blue inside ther…

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Same place, different lines

Jill Swenson

October 15, 2023

The story Chief Ay Ash Wash told about the US-Canadian border splitting his family in two, like a knife ripping through his torso, is one he passed down to his son, Kakaygeesick, who told it to his children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren. Don told it to me.

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Same place, different times

Jill Swenson

October 8, 2023

Kakaygeesick holds the Treaty #3 pipe in this vintage postcard. The photograph was taken in the 1950s with a pipe forged in the 1870s and when I look at this souvenir now it evokes memories of the late 1960s and early 1970s. Whenever I return to Warroad, time collapses. The lake seems the same now as it did when I was a kid. Same as when my mom grew up.…

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Memory, Time, History on Lake of the Woods

Lake of the Woods

Same place, different lines

Same place, different times

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