As soon as school was out for the summer, we knew what that meant. Trips to my cousins’ Wisconsin dairy farm from our hot Chicago suburb....

My dad Charles, known affectionately as Charlie, was away during the war when I was born. We did not meet until I was two years old....

Her name was Mabel and she was the perfect grandmother. She was a plump soft woman and when she gave me a hug, it was so comforting. She...