Memories

Many years ago, I read a short piece in a woman's magazine about clearing out the home of an elderly woman after her death. Among her belongings they found a large ball of string (frugal people used to save string, rubber bands, pieces of foil, bread bags, etc. for some need in the future). It was labelled, "Pieces of string too short to use." That's how I feel about my memories; I'm grateful I started a blog (web log, or diary on the internet) 20 years ago, because I remembered then details I can't recall now. I occasionally recall something from Alameda, CA during our time there in WWII, or an event at Faith Lutheran in Forreston, IL where we lived after Dad's time in the Marines. One piece of string I found today for which I have no story to write because I was trying to remember the pastor's name, is how cute my little brother looked in his Bumble Bee costume for the Mother's Day program at the church.
It's a piece of string too short to use.

Billy Collins wrote a poem called "Forgetfulness" in 1994. It's the only poem I have posted on my refrigerator. https://youtu.be/aj25B8JYumQ?si=M5m15Zd1J-cI5zvX You can hear the audience laugh, but you'll recognize every line. It's happened to you,

This 2011 blog entry includes both Alameda and Forreston at Christmas. Collecting My Thoughts: Monday Memories--Christmas in the 1940s

Collecting My Thoughts: Monday Memories of Kindergarten and Alameda

Time travel in church, “This is my Father’s world.”

The sermon theme this past Sunday was “Drinking Tea,” which doesn’t make a lot of sense, except the idea was to relax from our busy distracted life and take in the beauty and complexity of God’s creation with a cup of tea, or good music, or the smell of frying bacon (yes, Joe actually fried up some bacon during the service). One of the hymns we sang Sunday was, “This is my Father’s world,” and I was immediately transported back in time to the junior choir at the little Lutheran church my family attended (but never joined) 1946-1951 in Forreston, Illinois. Our neighbor in Forreston, Helen Vietmeier invited us to attend  (she died in 2010 and I last saw her at my mother’s funeral in 2000). The church welcomed us warmly and we children participated in everything, although we remained members at our home church in Mt. Morris.

This popular hymn by Maltbie D. Babcock was written in 1901, the year of his death, and wasn’t published as a hymn until later. But it’s probably in most Protestant  hymnals, and by the 1940’s even little kids could understand and gustily belt it out, particularly the “This is my Father’s world” line which is repeated 6 times. Franklin Sheppard adapted Babcock’s poem of 16 verses, to 3 verses of 4 lines each in 1915. So that’s only about 30 years for that hymn to become so popular even little kids could sing it and remember it years later.

Our pastor when I was belting out songs in the junior choir was Rev. Dr. T. B. Hersch (1871-1959) who was older than my grandparents, and was born and raised in Polo, Illinois. He retired to Polo after leaving the Forreston church in 1953 (as seen in the Freeport paper which you can find on the Internet).  I don’t remember him as an inspiring preacher in his black robe and white hair—but then, how much does a 7 year old remember?  Actually, a lot when his wife Alice got ahold of the children during Sunday School or VBS.  She was a dynamo, and you just kept your eyes glued on her and didn’t even whisper when she did those felt board Bible stories, moving Jesus and the sheep around the fields and mountains.  She died in 1970 at Pinecrest in Mt Morris. My mother volunteered there—wondered if she visited her?

Monday Memories--I was a stranger and you invited me in

After Dad returned from the service after WWII he was assigned a new territory by Standard Oil, and he moved our family to Forreston, Illinois in 1946. Poor Mom! Housing was scarce and the old farm house Dad bought didn’t have a bathroom and the indoor water was a pump in the kitchen. I was only 6 and thought it was a great adventure--horses in the pasture next door, a new puppy, a different school and new friends.

Our next door neighbor, Helen Vietmeier, was beautiful, kind, gentle and soft spoken. Her family lived in a lovely home where I often visited and played. Although I didn’t usually call adults by their first name, she was always Helen to me which is what her lovely teen-age daughters Doris and Betty Jo called her. Helen reached out to the strangers in that shabby house and invited our family to the Lutheran church, one of three Protestant churches in the town of 1,000 settled by Germans in the 1850s.

Although we were members of the Church of the Brethren 15 miles away in Mt. Morris and remained “visitors” the five years we attended, we children participated in everything--choir, Bible school, Sunday School, plays for special events like Mother’s Day and Christmas pageants, and those wonderful Lutheran pot lucks. Because we were so young, we effortlessly learned the liturgy, difficult hymns, the creed and the Lord’s Prayer through regular Sunday attendance. When I didn’t understand Pastor Hersch’s sermons I would look at the amazing stained glass windows for which 19th century members had sacrificed. My sisters and I were all baptised in our former church, and they also attended confirmation classes at the Lutheran church. My oldest sister began her career as a church musician on the organ at little Faith Lutheran. We returned to our home community and church in 1951 after Dad owned his own business, and I didn’t see Helen again until my mother’s funeral almost 50 years later.

In 1975 we’d been living in Upper Arlington for 8 years. I heard about a speaker who was going to be at Upper Arlington Lutheran Church, so I decided to attend. I was a stranger and didn‘t know anyone, but I sat next to Dottie Wharton who invited me to attend services with her and a neighborhood Bible study at Denise Kern’s home. About a year later on Palm Sunday 1976, we were confirmed by Luther Strommen and joined UALC. I felt right at home.

Praise God for believers who reach out to strangers to extend a welcome and the Gospel. And praise God that the stranger is being Christ to the believer.

Faith Lutheran Church, Forreston, Illinois

Our family members were "visitors" here for five years--we participated in everything. Bible school, junior and senior choirs, Sunday School, confirmation classes, lots of church dinners, special dramatic events--we did it all. In the past 50 or so years I've been back several times. Still a warm, loving, welcoming congregation. This video is in honor of their 150th anniversary last fall.