Aggies
from Newton reminisce on growing up rural
FIELDS OF GOLD:
Rural Newton offered many wild places to play for two
kids who grew up there. / Photo by Rachel Christensen
By Rachel
Christensen
November 18, 2008 | NEWTON -- Chris Haws and Kendell
Fabricius are sprawled on the living room couches in
their apartment near Utah State University. They're
reminiscing about growing up in Newton, from building
forts to backyard displays of pyrotechnics.
"Then Chris would get sprayed by skunks," Fabricius
said, looking up from from strumming his accoustic guitar.
"Yes, I would," Haws replied with a chuckle. "We didn't
notice it 'til after we got home and we were like 'hmmm.'"
A self-declared farm boy, Fabricius loves the rural
feel of Newton.
"My favorite thing is we could do all this only five
minutes away," Fabricius says. "Mountains: five minutes.
The dam: five minutes. We could get on our snowmobiles
in town and ride out."
Fabricius said although he loved growing up in Newton,
he doesn't miss the hour-long bus ride it took to get
a school that was only 15 minutes away.
"It zig-zagged," he said. "You had to wait for a bus
to come because the same bus took students home from
different schools."
Growing up with what seemed like endless open fields
to play in, Fabricius said as kids they learned to rely
on their imaginations.
Haws said, "I guess occasionally you'd find bugs to
use as pets. Get a jar, put holes in the top, and take
them home."
It wasn't all fun and games. Fabricius and Haws both
said they learned a strong work ethic.
"We worked ever since we could walk pretty much,"
Haws said. "If you wanted something you had to pay for
things yourself."
The small town ensured the boys grew up with strong
relationships to their families.
"The families are close," Haws said. "We ate homemade
food together, we would only go out to eat on birthdays."
After almost 20 years of living in Newton, both Fabricius
and Haws agree the small town was a good place to grow
up. At the very least, it provided them with some good
stories to tell the kids someday.
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