Matt and Mandy

Illustrations by Shauna Mooney Kawasaki

Matt: How far did pioneer children have to walk?

Dad: It varied, but from Winter Quarters to Salt Lake City was a little over a thousand miles.

Matt: Wow! How far have we walked today?

Dad: Oh, a couple of miles so far.

Matt: I’m a wimp! I could never have been a pioneer!

Dad: Those pioneer children were heroes, Matt, but in some ways they had it easier than you do. How many bad Internet sites ambushed them on the trek? How many trashy TV shows or video games did they have to dodge?

Dad: You have your own plains to cross, your own mountains to climb, your own rivers to ford. You’ll need every bit as much strength as the pioneers had, and I think you’ve got it. What do you think?

Matt: I don’t know if I’ve got it, but I’m going to get it.

Dad: Spoken like a true pioneer!