As a part of the 2022 StoryCorps mobile tour, mother and daughter Linda Schmitt and Kierstin Schmitt unearth small but deeply meaningful and rewarding memories.
Linda Schmitt: One Christmas, I was given a sweatshirt that had my name on it. And inside the door of the closet in that hallway was a full length mirror. And there I sat in front of that mirror, trying to figure out why it was backwards.
Kierstin Schmitt: [Laughs]
Linda Schmitt: I was just a little kid, you know? And I couldn’t figure it out, and I never wore the sweatshirt. [Laughs] I never wore—
Kierstin Schmitt: [Laughs] Like, it’s backwards, why would—[Laughs]
Linda Schmitt: But you know, I—doesn’t crush you. And then another time I remember sitting on the floor (I spent a lot of time on the floor)...
Kierstin Schmitt:[Laughs]
Linda Schmitt:...in the dining room, kind of underneath one of the big chairs, and I had my brother’s sneakers—high top sneakers that had really long laces, you know? And I figured out how to tie a bow. Ta-da!
Kierstin Schmitt: [Laughs]
Linda Schmitt: It was wonderful! It was victory! It was the biggest thing. Is still is: That feeling of being victorious!
Kierstin Schmitt: Right?
Linda Schmitt: Ay-ay-ay.
Kierstin Schmitt: [Laughs]
Linda Schmitt: So, anyway, so life was full of small victories like that.
Kierstin Schmitt: Yeah.
Linda Schmitt: But to me, they were enormous.
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The 2022 StoryCorps mobile tour recorded at the Missoula Public Library from May through June 2022, giving Missoulians the opportunity to preserve their conversations and stories for future generations. StoryCorps Missoula is brought to you in part by Clearwater Credit Union, Partners Creative, and Montana State Fund.
