In the Spring of each year, before the pasture grass had matured sufficiently for grazing, cattle were allowed to graze the tender new sprouts along the gravel road. The author, as a young boy during the Great Depression, was responsible for herding the cows through the half-mile stretch of road near his family’s small farm. While his dog Brownie did the hard work, he would rest under the lone tree reading a copy of National Geographic and dreaming of what was “out there” beyond his limited horizon. This collection of short stories reflects scores of the author’s experiences as, over a lifetime, that dream became a reality.

In “The Peonies Still Bloom,” one of 68 stories in this book, we learn that Earl Winklepleck and Charles R. Sapp, the author’s father, became fast friends in boot camp and the trench warfare of France during World War I. When mustered out of the army in June 1919, they agreed to meet at the South Dakota State Fair in September. It was not to be. On July 4, one of the worst accidents in South Dakota history killed 9 people, including Earl and one of his two siblings. In an instant, the Winklepleck family’s great joy at a son’s safe return from war was obliterated. When Charles heard of the accident, he traveled to visit the remaining family and offer his condolences. On that trip he met, and two years later he married, Earl’s remaining sister. Out of that enormous tragedy great joy again emerged, and without that tragedy, of course, there would be no author and no book.

So enjoy these tales of tragedy and joy; wisdom and stupidity; family, friends and strangers; faith, hope and love - in short, of life and humanity.

Charlie Sapp Charlie Sapp was born in rural South Dakota during the depths of the Great Depression and raised on a hardscrabble farm without electricity or indoor plumbing. The product of a one-room school, he determined one bitterly cold winter day, while shoveling manure, that farming was too difficult and that he was going to go to college. Farming, however, was deep in his DNA and he never strayed far from food-related pursuits. His journey began at South Dakota State, where he majored in Dairy Manufacturing, and, after his marriage to Lori Johnson, continued at Michigan State, where he got a Masters degree in Food Science. Following a half dozen years in Wisconsin and Michigan managing creameries and a vegetable canning factory, he shifted to various executive roles at supermarket companies in Southern California and ultimately San Antonio, Texas, where he has lived for the past 37 years. This book reflects his marvelous story-telling ability and homespun wisdom as he tells the stories of a vast array of family and friends