Miranda Pollock and her spouse, Angus Pollock, and five children — Madison, Elyse, Zachary, Gavin, and Sam — have always lived a little differently than the rest of society. They are unique, and they appreciate the authenticity of nature and character. They once roamed free on an almost Amish farm outside of Lafarge, Wisconsin with limited technology, but now they find themselves fully immersed in city life after Miranda accepted a position as a Professor of Graphic Design at Buena Vista University (BVU) in Storm Lake, Iowa. Despite the move, they continue to hold their unique appreciation for the authenticity of nature and character.
“When I look at my children, I see children who are very imaginative, who don’t worry about staying in the lines. If it’s in their mind, they’ll create it. They are amazing free spirits,” Miranda Pollock said.
Miranda’s second oldest daughter, Elyse, is a dandelion. Miranda describes her as a “hippie kid” who seems to be running barefoot whenever she gets a chance. In today’s society, we cannot seem to think of a time before technology. But Elyse simply does not care much about that part of society. Despite this, Elyse has a long list of hobbies and activities she participates in instead.
“I like to write stories, and I sing and play guitar as I’m very music-inspired. I do a lot of art and I read. When we lived on the farm, we had 16 or 18 acres, and I would go
 Angus on the Farm |  Elyse and Natural Fencing |
|---|---|
 Sam Weaving |  Elyse and Gavin Making Mud |
 Gavin Playing in Mud |  Miranda Covered in Mud |
 Zach and Angus |  Elyse and Sam going through Produce |
 Gavin in the Garden |  Angus |
 Sam and Gavin |  Angus with Farm Pigs |
 Zach and Gavin |  Elyse |
 Elyse's First White Charcoal Drawing |  Miranda and Goat |
 Miranda and Goat |  Miranda and Goat |
 Elyse |  Gavin Milking a Goat |
 Zach |  Zach and Goat |
 Zach, Elyse and Gavin |  Elyse and Sam Singing |
 Sam and Gavin Next to Fort |
outside a lot and hike around. It was nice to get out there,” Elyse said. “Where we lived there were hills and trees; it was beautiful. I did want to experience what it was like to live in town, but after that, reality hit me. In town, I can’t really get out to go hiking anywhere; I can’t really get out to just be by myself and have my own thoughts.”
Elyse would rather bike or walk places, which is why she has decided not to get her driver’s license even though she is of the required age. Often, she is contrasting the popular norms that her friends follow.
“People would get mad at me because I would leave my cell phone in my room. But anymore, you’re trying to have a conversation with them and all they’re doing is scrolling through Facebook,” Elyse said. “On the farm, I gained so much knowledge that not a lot of the other teenagers that I go to school with know about.”
Last summer, all of Pollock’s children decided to build a tree fort. But it wasn’t just any tree fort.
“When I went up to see the fort, it was amazing. I was impressed that these children — children — built a structure with a solid floor and a ladder and woven twigs. They had an idea, they explored it, and then they executed it without any assistance from an adult. Those are the kinds of things that I was really hoping the kids could learn, that they don’t need a plan from someone else to create something, they can do it themselves.”
However, Angus and Miranda have experienced with their two youngest boys that technology is mostly a generational aspect that society surrounds us with. Because Gavan and Sam are usually messing with or playing on some type of electronic gizmos, they have trouble explaining the benefits that going without it can reap.
“Sometimes it’s hard to explain to our kids that there’s a whole other world out there that you can create for yourself,” Angus said. “It’s a weird balance.”
There is definitely one thing the whole Pollock family can agree on, and that’s the notion that everyone should take a moment to stop and look at the world, explore it, and even admire how beautiful things truly are.
Images provided by Miranda Pollock
Images provided by Miranda Pollock