Walking in the Light

Sometimes in the evening, I head out barefoot to the backyard and traverse under the pine and other trees and watch the sunset. “There’s a reason they call them family trees,” I thought to myself the other night after dinner, taking my hand and brushing over the ruddy bark as cicadas vibrated the air in the background.

As I approach 49 in October, time has finally allowed light to shine into most of the stubborn, fleshy, dark spots of my mind. In doing so, that light has opened up even more portals in my brain, in search of, and deeply passionate about, sharing old stories in new ways. This is one of those stories.

As sordid or sorted out all our “family trees” can get, they are all so precious and important – everything good, bad, ugly, beautiful, and otherwise. We are stories – our DNA and cells come together from those original seeds to express something entirely new and different from anyone else. With branches growing in all sorts of diverse directions on those trees, in this case I wanted to take a moment to feature an extended family member of mine, one of those cousins down the line that are connected in ways that would take another paragraph to define. But this isn’t a story about mapping out families. It’s about sharing stories. This time those stories are in Marilyn J. Dey’s book, “Walking in the Light of His Glory.” Marilyn and her sister Rosalie Hilmer are sisters. They are my relatives, yes. But more so, they are truly friends to me. What an honor to write this. I hope I do the light justice.

As families go, storytellers go too. We’re all very different. But the vein that courses through us much the same way is the fun fact that we are all pretty darn apt at storytelling. There’s an energy that arises when I spend time with Rosalie and Marilyn. Stories come to vibrant real life, with all the dark and most importantly – the light.

That’s why I was pleased as punch when Marilyn’s daughter, Kim, reached out to me and asked if I would consider writing one of my hope stories about her mom’s book. This is how the big universe of love goes you see, because I was just thinking about Marilyn and her book when Kim sent a note. I just needed that extra nudge from our loving Creator to finally write about this family friend and to elevate the need for sharing oral and written stories with the next generation. Because, we’re losing stories by the minute – the obituary page of the newspaper is testament to that. Let’s share them before they’re gone!

My connection to the amazing energy of this branch of the family came when my Aunt Norma (Tonniges) Troester (my mom Lorraine’s sister) hoped and prayed I would attend a Maronde Reunion at some point. As young people’s lives go, I didn’t make it work at first. But then I finally did. I honestly can’t remember when, but it was in the basement of a church most likely. That’s where I caught up with Marilyn, Rosalie, Aunt Norma, and other cousins and family that I would never be able to name.

I am always up for a good potluck too and that’s what many of those reunions include. There I can indulge in crazy food combinations like cold fried chicken, every kind of meatball, orange Jello with carrots and raisins in it, all nestled up to mashed potatoes, gravy, and cherry pie. But, even though the eclectic food matches my interesting tastebuds, the stories are the gold I am seeking, more precious than actual gold in my mind.

I can’t possibly share all the stories in Marilyn’s book, because I want you to seek a copy out for yourself. I was honestly surprised by many of them. She had some serious heartbreak in her early married life that she shares so gracefully. But mostly it’s a book about an imperfect family that loved each other so much. An imperfect family like we all have. It’s a book about making the most of everything on the farm. It’s adventuresome too! Like the fact her dad was a pilot, and they had an air strip even on the farm!

Marilyn, Rosalie, and their siblings’ parents were Raymond and Ruth (Staehr) Junge who lived their lives conditioned by the times – the 1930s and all the dramatic changes that led to this moment. It’s a book strewn with pictures carefully laid out to match the events of the day, from crop destruction by harsh weather, to wedding pictures that depict the first love she buried (a story that must be known by reading Marilyn’s tender, faith-filled words alone). There were also stories about a growing family with her second husband Doug and everything in-between. Of course, I recognized little Kim from her elementary pictures. What a beauty. I always loved running into the energetic blonde with beautiful eyes when we were young trying to find our way.

Among the many photographs is a picture of an Ocean Pacific bike that Marilyn’s son Mark purchased for her. The caption reads, “Every girl’s dream.” That’s the thing about visiting with Marilyn and Rosalie, they make life’s everyday stories come alive like dreams. Stories like Marilyn wrote about moving into their first home, “Doug made arrangements to rent a little house on the east edge of the village of Gresham as our first home. It had a little kitchen, living room, large bathroom, and a bedroom. The guys moved the new gas stove, which I had bought while I worked at Western Power and Gas Co. in York, into place in our kitchen. The ringer washing machine and rinse tubs were placed in the basement, and Doug put a wire clothesline up between two trees. Everything weas dried on the clothesline. Doug parked his Pontiac in an old barn on the place. I have sweet memories of our first cozy little home.”

Memories come alive on every page and are blooming with joy. A testament to this joy I believe is found in the foreword of her book where she shares this, “I was raised in a farm family setting by two very positive people.”

Her father, she went on, “was a natural leader and always a cheerleader. He would say, ‘You believe you can do it, girl, and you will do it.’ He always saw in me the potential to be successful! He would say, ‘There is nothing too big for you to accomplish or to overcome,’ and I believed him. I am honored to be their daughter.”

Marilyn’s faith courses through the words of her book. It is a faith that resonates with the title and clearly expresses that Jesus is where Marilyn found her constant light. I think my favorite verse is this one that opens Chapter 14 – “Religion vs. Relationship.” It’s Isaiah 43:2, “When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee: And through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned; nor shall the flame kindle upon thee.”

Everyone is basked in bold, loving gracious light, (whether they can see it or not). The good news is the darkness we face doesn’t need to understand the light because the light is true, absolute, and forever. Marilyn, I must say, your stories touched my heart, made me cry a bit, and made me giggle too. May we all share our stories and share what lights up our lives. Because, as her dad said, “There is nothing too big for you to accomplish or to overcome.” Marilyn believed her dad. We should all believe him too. Sometimes it takes a while for that light to get through the stubborn folds of our minds and hearts, but I assure you – the light will most certainly shine through.

Order Marilyn’s book at: Amazon.com: Walking in the Light of His Glory: A Delightful Journey of Faith, Family, and the Favor of God: 9781943027590: Dey, Marilyn J.: Books

Now, go and share your stories too. They all matter, hard and good. They are stories that made you – you.