Nelson’s Journal, Entry #3

Posted on February 12, 2023 by Margaret

When Nelson died seven weeks ago, one of the gifts that came to his wife Ann Sophie was ownership of his journals. He journaled faithfully throughout his adult life, often working out problems with words on paper, committing them to God as he went along.

A few years ago he switched to journaling on his computer, and it’s these entries Ann Sophie and I have been looking at recently. Nelson never made his journal public, but as we’ve been reading them, we’re learning how he coped with his lung cancer diagnosis. How does it feel to be told you have Stage 4 cancer? How do you cope in the days and months that follow? How do you bear this heavy burden, day after day?

As Nelson tapped out his thoughts each morning, usually at around 5:00 AM, he wrote words that might help us all—should we ever hear a similar diagnosis while sitting in a doctor’s office. The entries are a combination of feelings, scriptures, and prayers.

In our recent blogs we posted Nelson’s thoughts from the day he heard he had cancer, and the day following that (5/10 & 5/12, 2022). Our plan is to back up into January, before cancer, and move through his his last year, posting entries every few days. Maybe he’ll show all of us how best to respond to the shocking news of lethal disease, and what to do next.

January 19, 2022

“Remember not the sins of my youth or my transgressions; according to your steadfast love remember me, for the sake of your goodness, O Lord! Good and upright is the Lord; therefore he instructs sinners in the way. He leads the humble in what is right, and teaches the humble his way. All the paths of the Lord are steadfast love and faithfulness, for those who keep his covenant and his testimonies. For your name’s sake, O Lord, pardon my guilt, for it is great. Who is the man who fears the Lord? Him will he instruct in the way that he should choose. His soul shall abide in well-being, and his offspring shall inherit the land. The friendship of the Lord is for those who fear him, and he makes known to them his covenant.” (Psalm 25)

Lord, you have really done this for me. Seeing a domestic violence thing in the paper the other day reminded me of where I would be if you hadn’t stepped in and offered me a way out of drinking, and then offered me a way out of a bad relationship. It’s real.

You really do the things you promise in the Bible. Thank you for answering my prayers. I will bank on the promises in the verses above. You have forgotten the sins of my youth, taught me the way to go, pardoned my guilt even in sin after the start of the sober years. And now you have given me offspring.

To see them inherit the land would be amazing and a total miracle. Thank you for little Willard Nelson Nyman who is soon coming into the world. Thank you for what is in a name.

Thank you for Papa [Willard Nathan Nyman] and what he taught me and how in sharing my testimony with the grounds team at Denny’s, I was able to refer to his words about not making decisions only for money. I pray for integrity with money. I can see the temptation to want more than I need, but I do have a family now and don’t want to sell us short. Please show me how to lead them. I know you will.

Should we buy something in Michigan to prepare to move there, or just wait? You know the future, Lord, and know what will happen. I pray for wisdom to know what is wrong and what’s right.

“Who is the man who fears the Lord? Him will he instruct in the way that he should choose.” (Psalm 25:12)

One Quick Question

Posted on May 8, 2018 by Margaret

A few days ago, I returned from two lively weeks with son Hans, his wife Katy, and their six children, in England. They home educate these children and are doing their best to raise them to know and love the Lord.

Every evening, after baths/showers and just before bedtime, Katy finds her way to the piano bench and begins playing their “hymn of the week,” the signal to gather for family worship. The children are each given a paper copy of the hymn, even those too young to read, and by the end of each week, they’ve all got it memorized.

Afterwards, Katy removes the two youngest, ages 15 months (Jonathan) and 3 (Lizzie), taking them upstairs for a children’s Bible story. The others stay with Hans for a more advanced study time, taking turns reading verses out loud. Then Hans gives a 15 minute commentary on the Scripture, leads in prayer, and it’s off to bed.

The evening before I returned home, I was happily anticipating our worship time with Hans and the older set, eagerly looking forward to hearing his thoughts and sharing in the discussion.

Though the children (ages 9, 8, 8, and 4) were supposed to wait till after Hans had explained the passage before asking their many questions, on this night Evelyn shot up her hand.

“Please, Daddy, just one little, tiny, quick question before I read the verses.”

“OK,” he said. “One quick one.”

“What’s prostitution?”

I caught Hans’ eye and we read each other’s thoughts. “Little… tiny… quick?” But Evelyn had asked with sincerity and was quietly waiting for an answer. Thankfully she’d already been told about the birds and the bees, so Hans started there.

“Well… you know what we talked about between a man and a woman… when they’re married. And prostitution is when someone pays money for sex.”

Before he could fully explain, though, Evelyn put up her hand.

“Who pays the money?”

Hans forged ahead. “The man,” he said.

At that moment he decided to try a diversion, going back to the Garden of Eden to detail God’s plan for marriage.

But Evelyn (at right) pressed her point. “So, is it not right to have sex if you have to pay?”

“That’s right,” he said, searching for a way to end this “quick” discussion.

“But,” Evelyn said, “why would a man pay a woman to have sex?”

Drawing a deep breath he said, “Because it’s fun.”

As Evelyn took in this new information, she repeated it, half to herself. “It’s fun?”

“You know what?” Hans said. “Your little, tiny, quick question has used up most of our Bible time, and we’re going to finish this discussion later. Right now, it’s time for prayer.”

“OK, Daddy,” she said, “but I’ve been reading in Song of Solomon that…”

At this point Hans interrupted her with a simple statement. “Let’s pray.” And that was that.

“Listen to your father, who gave you life.” (Proverbs 23:22)

Critter Gitters, Conclusion

Posted on July 21, 2016 by Margaret

After pest-pro Eric inspected my house and found all the spots where multiple animals were entering and exiting, he set traps to begin catching (and relocating) them. The very next day, several of the traps had bounty in them, so he came right over.

I knew he was pleased at our first catch when I heard his excitement high on the ladder. “Flying squirrels!” he said. “I didn’t know there were any in this area!”

Remembering my ceiling stains, I couldn’t share his joy. But there they were, three grey squirrels with white “ruffles” on their sides, flaps that opened into wings allowing them to fly from tree-to-tree. “They’re practically tame,” he said. “My boss will want me to bring these to his property.”

“And how far away is that?” I said.

“Far enough. Seventeen miles.”

There were other catches as the week went on, and Eric also thinned our prolific chipmunk population, thwarting their repeated attempts to get into my house.

As he worked, I followed him around, watching him work and learning about his business. “People think we enjoy killing animals. One woman even called me a murderer. But we do our job with great care and as much kindness as possible.

“We keep a record of every animal we catch, whether we relocate or euthanize, and when, where, how. The Department of Natural Resources monitors everything we do, and if we make a mistake, we answer to them. And we have to be current on which animals are on the protected list, to be sure we release any caught by mistake.”

As he described how careful he was in ridding homes of critters, it made me wonder how careful I am in ridding myself of the negatives that tend to sneak into my life – things like a critical spirit, an exaggerated truth, or a complaining attitude.

Do I regularly examine my motives and emotions, inch by inch, to be sure nothing problematic is taking up residence within me? Do I hold a mirror up to myself, hunting for even the smallest sins with a desire to route them out?

If not, I’d do well to remember Eric’s diligence. And once the offenders were out of my house, he was just as thorough in sealing everything up, which wasn’t easy. It meant repairing a broken window (left), buying a missing piece of siding and reinstalling it, tightening up other rows of siding, purchasing a new dryer vent-tube and putting a cage over the exterior vent, trimming trees to within 10 feet of the house, using stainless steel and other “non-chewables” to fill up holes, and doing it all on a series of ninety-degree days.