The Reindeer Keeper

I've posted this photo before showing me with my cousin standing on a sidewalk in what used to be the downtown of our hometown. It was taken after a parade in the summertime. We'd been part of a float celebrating the 19th Amendment. This is the only personal photo I have of that downtown. I can't run out and take a new photo because the downtown is no longer there. All that remains are a few buildings that escaped the wrecking ball. The rest of that downtown is tucked away in my heart. There are so many memories:enjoying milkshakes at soda fountains; stopping at at my uncle's shoe store where a merry-go-round for kids was quite popular; spending time in a small bookstore with my mother and feeling my imagination stirred by the smell of all those printed words in one space; going with my mother to a fancy dress shop and being told to sit in a chair and not to budge an inch; going with my mother to a men's shop that I seem to remember had two doors, and of all the...

There are some things that really don't change-like the love of a cardigan sweater that spans generations. I don't know when this picture was taken showing some of my aunts in their cardigans but I wear similar cardigans today. A cardigan is timeless-versatile-always adds the perfect touch.There's just something about them. They become old friends-always there for us-always making us feel warm-making us feel like all will be okay. Although some cardigans come with buttons, hooks, or zippers, the style of the sweater remains the same despite the use of a variety of fabrics. I still remember a cashmere cardigan my mother wore when dressing up-quite possibly the softest sweater I've ever felt. With small silver buttons up the front, I thought my mother looked like a fairy princess every time she wore it to go some place special with my father. When she wasn't wearing her cashmere sweater, my mother kept it in a dresser drawer wrapped in tiss...