We learned to love ice. It’s very, very cold in Bismarck. There are sub-zero temperatures with wind-chill that takes you away, way below zero. We grew up on the ice skating rink. Ice skates were passed from one child to the next as we get older. We spent a lot of time playing crack-the-whip.

My older siblings helped me put on my skates. Eventually you’ll learn to put on one skate while keeping one boot on. Then gradually you just got on to both skates. Of course you started with skates with double-runners, and then you just went into regular skates.

I remember lots of snow when the blizzards came through. There would be a big snow banks up against the house and we would jump off the roof into the snow. That was a blast but you had to cover all your skin. You learn that very early.

I was the youngest of four and sometimes there weren’t enough scarves to go around. So my mother would take dish towels and wrap them around my face. As a young child I didn’t realize that I was wearing a dish towel; I just wanted to be bundled up. But later on kids started to tease me for wearing a dish towel across my face, and I realized that I wanted a scarf for Christmas.