A Biography

Here I am on a snowy March day and I've got the laundry put away. I've got the kitchen clean, the floors vacuumed. School is done and youngest daughter is delivered to her much-anticipated Awana program.
Time to write a little for the progeny. Sometimes incidents in your life come up, and you can share a related story from your past that has colored your world. More often we tend to surprise our children with tidbits of the past that don't seem to fit into a whole. Can I give a little bio of myself?
This may take awhile, since I'm close to half a century old now. But let's try to get started.
My life story is a story of faith. I share it in hopes of being witness to Truth and how it has affected me and those around me. I will share the parts that are wholly my own or parts that I deem not to be harmful (at least not deeply so) to other individuals who have affected my life positively or negatively.
I'll start with my family's background:
My two parents were raised in strong Bible believing homes. My dad is the product of immigrant Swedes who had a protestant christian faith. My paternal grandparents were strong members of the Swedish Evangelical Free Church. My mother is the product of Norwegian Lutherans and a Evangelical Free Church pastor. Strong Dispensationalists all.
My dad is a gentle soul who couldn't believe the luck he had when my smart and beautiful mother agreed to marry him. I think of him as someone with deep integrity and strong compassion for everyone he met. He wasn't emotive, except when his funny bone was tickled. He cried hard when I left the country for a year, and that did me in too. I cried the whole plane ride to Europe, feeling so bad I'd been the cause of my dad's tears. Dad was a savvy businessman who never gambled or drank alcohol. He was a product of the University of Minnesota, and some of his life philosophies can be traced to that part of his education. He loved to hear good preaching, and we traveled far to enjoy the sermons or special messages from all sorts of speakers, like "Bible Town," in Boca Raton, FL, or "Founder's Week" at Moody Bible Institute. Often we attended the Evang. Free Church Annual Conference.
My mother is an RN. She loves to read, and she devoted her life to her children and her church. She is artistic, musical, and knowledgeable in so many fields. Gardening and landscaping was a life-long passion she could pursue with the acres of land we had as a family in Minnesota. She loved animals, to the point of letting me, her only daughter who had a passion for them, have them at the expense of other family members. (Horses, cows, dogs, and cats). She raised me to be musical and artistic, but her sense of decor and landscaping never got through to me. I've let her decorate each house I've lived in. When people visit her home they are impressed by the serenity and elegance of it all. She's also a life-long nutritionist, self taught. Organic, healthy food was an integral part of my upbringing. She is a legendary cook.
Some things were important in my home: hospitality, honesty, obedience, reverence for the Lord, cleanliness. My oldest brother (as most oldest children) probably suffered the severest discipline, but he usually deserved it. My second brother is a quieter fellow. Both of them are years older than I, and they were practically a different family when I was growing up. They worked at the family business each summer when school was out when I was old enough to notice. They just weren't around me much.
So this is my story. I became a believer when I responded to an altar call at a children's meeting. I raised my hand at the invitation to receive Christ, and walked forward to meet with a counselor. She was someone I knew from my church, and I prayed with her to receive Christ. I was four years old.
Of course I attended Sunday School and church every Sunday. As I got to school age I went to Pioneer Girls (Monday) and Wednesday night prayer meeting. Faithfully. Sometimes I felt we practically lived at church!
It was a cozy and safe childhood.
Mom was a popular leader for Pioneer Girls. She taught the high school girls, and I felt I sort of knew many of them as her daughter.
Our church was a community church, non-denominational, but it had a mighty missions program. We supported and pledged funds to dozens of missionaries all over the world. Every missions conference we reaped the benefit of hosting new and different people in our home. I was able to meet fascinating individuals. I remember eating breakfast with Pelendo, the famous African Christian.
My dad had a profound respect for missionary doctors. His brother built a cutting-edge hospital in Tandala, Zaire, and this must have really influenced him. I remember my dad encouraging smart young men to become doctors and then enter the mission field. Why wouldn't you do that, if you could?!
One missionary doctor had a deep influence on me. Dr. Olson, a missionary to India, gave a stirring appeal for us to commit our lives to missionary service. I responded. I made a public commitment to pursue a career as a missionary, and that was to shape my high school years and college like nothing else. I was twelve years old.
When I was 13 I got to attend Bill Gothard's Basic Seminar. (IBLP) As an open- hearted and open-minded youngster I soaked up the teaching during that week. It was the beginning of multiple blessings that lasted my whole life! (Now don't just quit reading here...Some people I know and love hate Bill, but for me he was only an encouraging influence)
I decided to make a public stand for Christ in my school. I became known as a rather bold Christian, and I was blessed for it. My friends were from all social strata---the drug users, the rich kids, the "smart" ones. By no means was I popular, but I did become the president of the foreign student club. (Go figure!)
I was also the student band director and I won the "good citizenship" scholarship from the US Bank. I was a member of the National Honors Society and generally a good student. One of my favorite teachers recognized a writing ability in me and I was able to publish a short poem and be involved in a state-wide writer's group. Art was my gift. I am now more of a portrait artist, but I developed as an illustrator of animals. Painting and drawing take so much time, so I've given it up for the present. It's my joy, though, and perhaps in heaven I'll get to pursue it!
My piano skills got me time as an accompanist for band and choir contests. I played the flute and sang in a sextet. Yes.
My singing group started in my freshman year. We seven girls (one played the piano for us) had the fun of touring and giving concerts--even making a much beloved recording of our most popular songs. We formed life friendships, and we all love and serve the Lord to this day! I can say it was the sweetest part of my high school years to have that group and the discipline it required. It's been a joy to watch all of our lives unfold. So much God-given promise, and so much God-given success. It's remarkable really.
That's chapter one. Must go off to the present day.