By Chris Linnares

When I arrived at US customs on my first trip to North Dakota, the immigration officer looked over my Brazilian passport and my airline ticket.  When he saw my destination —  Fargo, North Dakota — He asked, “What are you going to do in Fargo, coming from Brazil?”

I didn’t hesitate and with a big smile, full of hope, I told him, “I met my soul mate. We’re getting married, and I’m moving to Fargo!”  Laughing, he said, “You truly must love this man.”

Who says North Dakota is always cold? Here are the kids and grandparents in Medora on a beautiful day!

At the time, I didn’t understand why he said that.  Raised in Sao Paulo, one of the largest cities in the world, I didn’t know much about North Dakota besides a brief conversation I had with a woman that told me they have the four seasons – winter, still winter, not winter, and almost winter.

Many people from all over the world and even within the US have a superficial cliché idea of this part of the country: brutal winters, bugs in the summer and not much to do.  To be completely honest, many times during the four years I’ve lived here, I have focused on these ideas.

In July of 2009, my husband and I became passionate about exposing our three daughters to ordinary women creating extraordinary lives. We took our family on a road trip in a motor home, or “house truck,” as our 3-year-old called it. Our goal: create a book about women who are quietly making our world a more beautiful place.

At the time, I thought this was our only purpose.  What I couldn’t have known was that the vastness of the plains and the endless beautiful skies would invite me on one of the most fascinating trips of my life, a journey unto myself. . .

In Bismarck, 102 year old Beautiful Woman, Tollie Schaumberg, Billy and I.

When I complained about how hard it is to live in this cold weather, inside my heated cozy home, I met women who bravely shared with me how they survived the harsh winters and the hardships of the Great Depression.

When I whined about being overwhelmed with my motherly duties taking care of one toddler, I met women who happily shared with me how proud they were for raising 11 children on an isolated farm or working to build an orphanage to help kids in South Sudan.

When I was feeling unmotivated to get up on a cold day to get my workout finished, I met women who happily shared with me how they every day overcome their physical disabilities and act as a force for good, for their families and communities.

In Rugby, at the Geographical Center of North America

The beauty of their stories — told with joy, peace or a tear — touched my heart in a special way that they helped me to see the beauty and light we all can be.

Our journey through North Dakota opened my eyes beyond the stereotypes and I felt truly in love with this blessed country. I wonder about women in other states who are quietly making the world a more beautiful place. I want them to be recognized, women from every state, because these are the women I want my daughters to see and hear about.

Izzy and Zoe with ND Governor Hoeven

No matter where you live, I invite you to travel on this journey with us. Take the opportunity to see these beautiful women and read their remarkable stories. I hope you will feel inspired, as my husband and I were, to embrace this cause and ask yourself one simple question:
How do I want to be remembered?