Merle was raised in a Christian family. He was taught that religion required many rules. He said that his mother was the most spiritual person he had ever met, yet just before she died, he remembered her “hoping” that she had been good enough to get into heaven. This experience and others led him to feel some of the things he was taught were not right. He began to study the bible to learn what it said rather than to just accept what someone else told him.
Merle had a spirit of discovery and independence. He studied hard and never simply accepted what he was told. Often he would tell me about a teacher he liked. Each time he would say “I’ve never met someone I’ve agreed with 100%, but this guy’s pretty close.” I think that was the best you could be according to Merle.
Merle went on to become a missionary and to teach the bible all over the United States. According to Merle, he was not a preacher, he was a bible teacher. He was a bible teacher for many years, and though I heard him say several times that he was retired, he never truly did. His life touched many lives; he was known and loved by many.
Merle was my grandfather.
Stan was raised on a dairy farm. One of eight children he was expected to help run the farm. Most of the family fed and milked the cows, cleaned the barn, and did all of the things that have to be done on a dairy. Stan, not being one to ever go with the flow couldn’t stand to work with the cows, so to do his part, he focused on the equipment. Long after the other kids were in the house, Stan would be found either working on equipment, or still out in a field driving a tractor. I don’t know how old he was when he began taking things apart, but I do know at the age of twelve, he traded labor for an old Studebaker that he saw abandoned in a neighbor’s field. He towed it home with a tractor and in no time, had that car running, and was racing around the farm.
Stan had a spirit of discovery and independence. He studied hard and never simply accepted what he was told. In high school, he wanted to make aluminum exhaust pipes for his Harley. He told his teacher his plan and was told that it couldn’t be done. The shop teacher finally agreed that he would give Stan an A in the class if he was successful. Stan earned the A.
Stan led a very colorful life full of many things. He was a business owner, a government employee, a fireman, an emergency medical technician, a farmer, and many other things. His life touched many lives, and he was known and loved by many.
Stan was my father.
I have always looked at life a little differently than those around me. I have held many jobs and have always been a very quick learner. In every job, as soon as I learned the way, I would begin to continually improve the way it was done, carving my own path. I have never had patience for just accepting the way something was done.
When I came to work at the state I was met by a culture comfortable with “the way it has always been done.” I did what I always have, quickly learned the way, questioning everything, studied hard, then did things the way I felt was best.
I was blessed to have Sarah as my first manager in government. After many times of getting stuck in the mass of statutes and rules she told me to “find a place to hang your hat, and then move on.” That phrase was all it took for everything to fall into place. I face my job and my life, and I study the bible the way my dad and grampa lived their lives. Study hard, learn from others, but don’t just accept what you hear. Look for yourself to see what is right.
Acts 17:11 reads: Now the Bereans were of more noble character than the Thessalonians, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true.
Two of my values are discovery and independence. I will study hard but never simply accept what I am told.
This I Believe.