Kim Burton: Only two days until Christmas, and the weather felt like a gift. Sixty degrees and no snow are rarities in South Dakota in December. The whole family was outside.
We were at my parents’ house in Eureka, where we gathered every year from near and far to celebrate the holiday. More than a dozen of us were in the yard—my two sisters, assorted husbands and kids—laughing as Dad gave the granddaughters tractor-driving lessons.
My daughter, Leah, was the only one missing. She was driving to Eureka on her own, after finishing up at the life insurance company where she worked outside of Minneapolis. She was 25,
