<-- back to additions index
<-- back to roger stories index
Two stories about Don. By Roger.
Pam told me she'd be submitting a story about a trick someone played on someone. Reminded me of the time Donald tricked Audrey and Pam (and Paula & Lavonne).
When I was about five, Don wanted to take me to see Rice Creek. I had never been there. Don wanted it to be just him and me. The girls were hanging around on the sundeck, and he knew that if the girls knew he was taking me to Rice Creek, then they would surely tag along.
So he put me on his back and challenged the girls to a race: He told them to ride their bikes around the block, starting by going north on Able Street. He told them he would run around the block in the opposite direction with me on his back. The race would be to see who gets back to the driveway first.
They walked right into it. Off they raced north up Able Street on their bikes. Donald sprinted south down Able Street with me on his back. Man he could fly. Of course he went right past 75th and just kept sprinting down Able Street.
By the time those idiot girls came around to Able Street again Don and I were all the way down to the end of Able. They never saw where we had gone to.
What a magical day it was for me. I remember seeing the huge marsh enroute for the first time. Also a long path with trees arching over it that headed seemingly forever towards the west. At the meadow above the creek, Don explained to me that the boy scouts used that meadow for some of their activities.
----
And then, many years later, Don came up with another race idea, this time involving shoulder rides:
It was the summer of 1974. Clarence and Harriet hosted a midday dinner in their front yard for a very large number of relatives and farm neighbors. It was just like it was back in the days of our childhoods. Grandma and Grandpa came from the nursing home as well. I'll never forget how happy Grandpa Fred looked sitting at the picnic table as he tipped his second bottle of beer up to his lips and sucked it down.
Well, after dinner we were all to go to Aardahl church for another event. Don challenged me to a foot race from Harriet's front yard to Aardahl. He said he would carry Denise on his shoulders while kicking a rock all the way to Aardahl, and I was to carry Stephanie on my shoulders kicking my rock.
Off we went. Stephanie and I pulled ahead. I glanced back at Don. His rock had veered off into the ditch. There he was in the ditch (with poor Denise on his shoulders) kicking like mad in the tall grass, trying to get the rock back out and up onto the road.
The dirt road was strewn with rocks. He could have just started kicking some other rock. But Don of course would not dream of cheating.
<-- back to roger stories index
<-- back to additions index
|