Raised on a secluded ranch in rural central Idaho Cerese Vaden’s early life was an anachronism. Butter churning, making bread, gathering eggs and feeding bum lambs were among the weekly chores. Avid reading and family trips across the United States led her to recognize the microcosm she lived in, but not until after graduate school did she learn to appreciate that “smaller” world.

House painting, cake decorating, floral design, greenhouse gardening and advertising supported her educational and artistic pursuits. But her longest lasting job, as an associate professor at the University of Arizona, came shortly after pursuing an MFA in studio art. Yet, she misses the butter churning, and even the bum lambs.

(Freely adapted by Vaden’s web site which you can link to here.)