When I think of the Midwest, I think of gorgeous weather from May through October, the grit that comes with surviving harsh winters, and the warmth and cordiality of its people. More recently as a transplant to Seattle, I think of the way that most of the rest of the US sees Minnesota – which is to say, there’s virtually “nothing there,” and I emphatically defend it as being one of the best places in the nation to live. It’s been about almost two years since I left to make a new home in other places, but the nostalgia never seizes to make me miss everything about it – including homemade pho and koy paa, and the smiles and laughter of Lao people at family functions. Despite being away for the last couple of years, I have learned from them and from the Minnesotan refugee community that compassion is learned through taking care of each other – and Lao Minnesotans have certainly have done that. We have seen in their robust social service system as …