I've Been Interviewed

Linds started her interview with these words:

This is how it works.....if you would like me to interview you, leave me a comment saying you would like to take part, and I will email you 5 specific questions for you to answer. This is a great way to get to know people, and I am all about getting to know you all better.

It was fun to read her interview answers to the questions she had been given. It was a great way to get to know her better.

I didn't think this could be that difficult and might even be fun. I offered to be interviewed by Linds. I had no idea what type of questions I would get. Maybe simple ones like "What's your favorite color?" or "How many sisters do you have?".

Instead, I received these. The type that make my brain wake up and think... hard....

1. Who, outside your immediate family, has been the greatest influence on your life, and why?

My great Aunt Esther was a nurse who decided to go to India as a missionary. When she was sixty years old she had still never married.

I was drawn to her because of my own desire to be a nurse. As I would hear her stories and meet her at various family gatherings, I was always challenged by the fact that she gave up personal dreams to fulfill dreams for God. The fact that she chose her work in India instead of staying here in the states to meet a man, fall in love and have a family always stood out to me. She always chose a very financially simple (some might call poor) life to be able to continue her work.

Her life and story continued in the impact it had on me when she retired from nursing and mission work in India. She returned to the states and .... married. The godly man that she married was an inventor for John Deere tractors.

Though she had nothing when she returned to retire or live on for the final days of her life, money was not an issue for her in those final days. She had given all she had in her mission work, and God took care of her in the end.

Her story impressed on me that by giving all to God, we really get it all and then more. God does not forsake His own. He will look out for them each and every day of their lives... even in their last ones. She personified for me an active faith and complete dependence on God in all circumstances.

She has since gone to meet the Lord face to face.

2. What is your favourite month and why?

I am looking forward to Spring coming. I chose May as a month of Spring: The things I look forward to in the month of May:

*warm enough to head outside once again for my quiet times; cool morning... warm coffee
*cool evenings bundled in sweatshirts, roasting hot dogs and sipping hot chocolate around a bonfire... often with friends
* days warm enough to start getting my hands in the dirt, I'm not much of a gardener but I do like to get out there and pretend I am.
* the smells... How does one even begin to describe those warm, sweet inviting smells of spring?


3. If you could meet 3 other bloggers, who would they be and what would you want to talk about?

ALL of them! Oh wait, did you say just 3?? Of course I would love to reconnect with all my IWU friends. However, I assume you meant someone that I have not actually ever met in person.

My answer to this question would change at different moments in my life. This moment in my life I would most like to meet:

Mrs. Pear: This dear girl has been through so much in the past few months. From having a baby and then learning of physical issues with both of her young children. Her life recently has been filled with numerous doctor appointments, navigating treatment for her new baby and a handful of other things.

I would most like to meet her at her home. I would like to spend as much time as it took filling her freezer with meals, love on her babies, put my arms around her to encourage her, and tell her to take off for some time for herself (even if that meant a nap every day I was there!)

I would like to meet her to do whatever I could in my power to relieve her from just a small amount of the stress, energy and strength that daily life has demanded of her lately.

Next I would head to meet Sandy. We would talk about all things regarding family, soccer, dialysis (we both work in this field), the Pacific NW, teenagers, entertaining, writing, blogging and whatever other topic we found we had in common.

Finally I would head to CJoy's. She also has had a rough few months. She has a child with one of the same diagnosis as my daughter.

I would like to put my arms around this dear lady. I would like to have the time to encourage her, to hear her, to affirm her experiences and to just love on her and her little ones. I would like to take over for her also for just a short time so she could rejuvenate her own spirit and soul.

And then there would be... oh wait. I could only choose 3. Seriously, I would so enjoy meeting each and every one of you!! You are each one a special blessing in my life.

4. What is your favourite hobby,( apart from blogging!) and where did you learn to do it?
Music. All styles. I love me some good music! I enjoy taking the time to just sit at the piano and play. I enjoy music in the background of whatever I'm doing. Music is therapeutic for me and I take full advantage of the variety available to provide just that!

I started piano lessons when I was five years old. The family rule was that we had to continue lessons until we could pick up a hymnal and play any song on the spot. Needless to say I spent most of my childhood years in lessons.

Much as I did not care for it then, I am so very grateful now!! Thanks Dad and Mom!

5. What is the most important life lesson you have learned?

That it's not about me. You might be laughing but I am serious. I am constantly reminded that this life I live has nothing to do with me and everything to do with a much bigger picture. It has everything to do with God and what He chooses to do in and through me. It is all about Him and I am just a small player in the bigger picture of His story!

So there you have it. My interview from Linds. Since she sent these questions she has become a grandma for the first time. Why don't you head on over and congratulate her! (plus see pictures of the adorable little one she is now immersing herself in.)