"I wanted to show them the world"

One aunt’s personal experience was the inspiration for a special gift she has given to each of her nieces and nephews. But the gift isn’t just for their benefit. Jenny Carlson would relish the time spent with each of them before they left for college. Her gift, a two-week vacation to Europe. 

Upon graduation from Ogden High School in 1989 Carlson was given the opportunity to visit Europe.

“It showed me that there is more to the world than small town Iowa,” she said. “It taught me that just because someone speaks another language, or has other beliefs, it doesn’t make them wrong - just different. It was fun and exciting to explore varying cultures and I wanted to share that with my nieces and nephews. I wanted to show them the world!”

Other graduation gifts Carlson felt, would soon be forgotten, but memories from those special times together, she knew, would last a lifetime.

Their travels took them to Germany, Ireland, Italy, England, Austria, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Scotland, Spain and France. They experienced pasta making in Florence, Italy and gin-making in Edinburgh, Scotland. 

“From London to Edinburgh to Amsterdam, to Munich, each city offered a new and exciting set of experiences,” said nephew Callan. “Being the last to take the trip, I had many years of anticipation and a long time to think about where I wanted to go.” But, he thought, that could be both construed as a good thing and a bad thing. “In the end, I struggled with where I wanted to go simply because there were too many options.”

But like his cousins, the highlight of the experience he says was not where he explored, but who he explored with - spending 19 uninterrupted days connecting with his aunt. 

Read more in the Dec. 20 issue of The Ogden Reporter.

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