Grandma D / Northern Wisconsin

SINCE THE BIRTH OF OUR SON, WE HAVEN'T REALLY HAD TIME AWAY.  SO, WE PLANNED A TRIP TO NORTHERN WISCONSIN TO SEE MY GRANDMA.  WE DECIDED TO BRING MADDIE AND I'M REALLY GLAD WE DID.  THE PHOTOS OF HER MAKING A PIE WITH "GREAT DONNA" MEAN SO MUCH TO ME. THANKS FOR LETTING US SLOW DOWN AND ENJOY SUMMER BREEZES ON A LAKE, GRANDMA.  WE LOVE YOU!  

Grandma D

I feel the city too much these days.  Don't get me wrong, I LOVE Minneapolis, but there's something rewarding and fruitful about getting away...and not to just another house away from the city, but to a place where you can't see or hear anyone.  Only you, your thoughts and God.  We (my fam) packed up our vehicle and headed to Northern Wisconsin a couple weekends ago.  This was a trip that had been planned since Spring and I was really looking forward to it.  A while back, I had a dream of photographing my Grandma. The reality of schedules and conflicts kept delaying things, but God saved one weekend for us.  Shortly after arriving at my Grandma's house in Rice Lake, I started photographing some of the amazing flower gardens my Uncle had helped create with my Grandma and soon we were off to our ultimate destination..."The Shack."  There were many layers to this brief trip, but a few that stood out to me were; my daughter's first time at "The Shack" and my Grandma's house, a road trip that actually happened this year, spending time with my only living grandparent, experiencing the smell of a REAL northwoods cabin that brought back memories from my childhood and having my wife actually say, "I think I could spend more time here."  AMAZING!  I wish I could somehow transfer the smell and sounds of this place.   My grandma is an amazing woman who has been through so much in her life.  LOVE YOU GRANDMA!  Here's a brief blurb my Grandma sent me after we left...

The "Shack" has been a place of refuge and solace to me for over sixty years now. It started as a small tar paper covered hut with a screened in porch, a necessity in this wild and beautiful mosquito infested, secluded woods of Northern Wisconsin.  It over-looks the equally small and secluded Pickerel Lake. There is no sandy beach, only a long, rustic dock extending out over the dark, murky water. The lake is fed by a creek that seems to come from nowhere and is often regulated by beaver dams. The "Shack" is bigger now and constructed of cement blocks.  There is still no inside plumbing or electricity. This is where I spent my honeymoon and many vacations throughout my life.  This is where the peace of God overflows within me.