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JANUARY 7
We have had a terrible blizzard for the last two days. The drifts are as high as the eaves on the south side of the barn. The high winds are whipping the snow into huge drifts across the road. Peter has strung a line between the house and the barn so he can safely get back and forth. I’m afraid that farmers may lose some livestock if the animals are not in a protected area. The temperature has been below zero for days. This storm is deadly.
To keep the children occupied, we made a large batch of skorpor.
The smell of the milk-soaked bread, sprinkled with cinnamon and sugar slowly drying in the oven lifted their spirits. Times like these I tell about the winters in Sweden. We had more snow over a longer period of time in Sweden, but not the high winds and snowdrifts like we get in Kansas.
January 17
When Pastor was talking today about “The Lord giveth, and the Lord taketh away,” it made me think about recent events. Hannah and Peter Olson added a son, Joseph Cornelius, to their family on the 5th. But while the blizzard raged, our neighbor Emma Lamkin died in childbirth. Charles could not get help because of the storm.
March 7
We have received the new Sears and Roebuck catalog in the mail. The children spend hours looking at the pictures and practicing their English by reading the advertisements. I would love to order a sewing machine. We shall see how wheat harvest goes this year and if we have extra money for such a luxury.
Our church is sponsoring the Kansas Church Conference, March 10-14. It was quite an honor to be selected. The women of the church must fix food for the visiting delegates. I will be spending two days there serving meals.
Peter and Hannah bought the farm straight north of us. Peter missed farming like I figured he would. He was over to see if we had any milk cows we would want to sell. I have been churning butter and selling it at Bridgeport, so we didn’t want to get rid of any cows right now.
March 19
I am drained. This morning I delivered a stillborn baby girl. I have had some pains the last few days, but it got worse last night. Peter wanted to get Dr. Bradley yesterday, but I didn’t think it was necessary. I thought I could just take it easy for a few days and I would be all right. The baby came two months early. She was so small, I don’t think she would have lived longer if she had been breathing.
Peter is building her a tiny casket. I asked that she be buried in Andrew’s pasture. I feel like it was my fault that the baby did not live. I let Peter down. He was hoping for a boy to carry on the Runeberg name.
June 2
President Cleveland married Frances Folsom today. He is 49, and she is 21. The newspaper says that the president had known Miss Folsom since she was an infant, and became her court-appointed guardian when her father died ten years ago. Apparently, a different relationship evolved as she got older. They were married at the White House. John Philip Sousa and the Marine band provided the music for the ceremony. The newspaper press is having a field day with this almost scandal from Washington.
July 30
We sat on the porch this evening and enjoyed the summer breeze. The full moon cast shadows around the house. The sky glittered with a million stars and a hundred fireflies. The sound of the frogs and the cicadas blended into the mellow evening. The younger children played hide-and-seek. This is the hour for Peter and me to spend time together and hear about each other’s day.
Peter was in Lindsborg today for errands. He saw that Bethany College has started on its first building. He also heard that Pastor LeVeau is leaving our church. Now we must go through the long process of calling another pastor.
September 11
Carrie rode with Peter to Gibson & Thorstenbergs’ Lumber Yard in Assaria today. Mr. Thorstenberg has a big cone of hard-pressed sugar and a little hammer on his desk. When children come in with their parents, he chips off a little piece of sugar for them. Needless to say, if Carrie gets a chance to go to town to the lumberyard, she beats Peter to the wagon.
October 4
Broomcorn is becoming a big industry in this area. The New Gottland and Hayes townships have the most broomcorn in the area, but most farmers grow at least a few acres since it is a good cash crop. A broom factory was built in Lindsborg in ‘80. McPherson has two factories.
Willie is helping the Robinsons with the broomcorn harvest this year. It is a hard job. The stalks, which can be 8 to12 feet tall, must be cut by hand and bundled. The bundles are brought into a shed, where the stalk is scraped until only the straight stalk is left. After that’s done, it is loaded into wagons and delivered to the factories.
December 14
The Christmas season has started, but I have not been able to get into the mood of celebrating this year. The approaching birth of Jesus reminds me of my loss this spring.
This morning before breakfast, I made a tiny wreath out of red ribbon and a cedar branch I curled into a circle. After the younger children left for school, I asked Christina to watch Julia for a while. Seeing the wreath in my hand, she sensed I was going to visit the baby’s grave in Andrew’s pasture.
Peter, Julia, and Kajsa
