Hi, Mark Simon here. I consider myself a very fortunate person. I grew up on a farm that has been in our family since 1865. I was the fifth generation to farm the land. I grew up working with my dad, my uncle, my cousins, and my grampas. I also feel fortunate to have been able to spend a lot of time with my son, Josh, who was the inspiration of these stories.

Over twenty years ago, I was in a car crash that left me partially disabled. Josh began helping me with milking the cows and other chores around the farm when he was twelve years old. Josh would have been the sixth generation to have farmed. We were forced to sell our herd of cows due to events beyond our control. After we had sold our cows, I would tell Josh stories of him growing up.

Now you’re probably wondering how the name Mookie came about. Back in the day, I was a pretty good ball player and coach. I felt that with my coaching, Josh would have been a pretty good ball player. But the accident I was in put that to a screeching halt. Anyway, I thought Mookie would be a good name for a baseball player, so I was calling Josh Mookie before he was born. These are some of our stories up to the time when he became house broke (out of diapers).