It's the cabin. It has been in our family for close to 50 years. My mother-in-law, Goldie, used money saved from her job as a cashier at Red Owl in Golden Valley. The family had done the resort thing for several years, while other friends bought lake spots. Then, Goldie and her husband, George, and daughter Connie found themselves standing in a shed out of the rain on Pelican Lake in Ashby, Minn. Another family also was there looking at a cabin. Goldie and George had the right of first refusal. Goldie pulled out cash, and the cabin was theirs.
The place has become our refuge and one of many family memories. Some of the best are the rides on the lawn mower with Grandpa. And there was fishing for the first time off the dock; ice cream cones and JoJos at the Snack Shack in town; volleyball against the neighbors; Rummy Royal; the traditional cousins' picture of the nine grandkids every year; and boat rides out to Bird Island.
Goldie and George now are gone, but we have kept the place a seasonal haven for family and friends. Every time we talk about tearing down or making major improvements, the kids won't have it. "It's the cabin!" they remind us.
Daniel Miller, Maple Grove
