the one who says something random

interview with Gretchen

How did you first hear about YLCF? I first heard about YLCF the day my cousin Melissa and I sat down to figure out what to rename the “Purry Kitten Christian Girl’s Club.”  P.K.C.G.C. was a bit long as names go, so after much deliberation we landed upon Y.L.C.F.   And that was in June 1997.

How did you “meet” the other YLCF team members and become one yourself? It wasn’t until I was married and didn’t have internet that my friend Natalie brought the other team members on board.  So I gradually got to know Elisabeth and Chantel—as well as Lanier and Ashleigh—through their posts on YLCF.  Later I discovered that my husband’s family lived next to Chantel’s family when they were young!  My in-laws got to meet Elisabeth on a trip to Israel.  And I’d read Jeannie’s parents’ books years before she joined YLCF’s ranks.  I’d met Jessica briefly in person before I read more of her writings and asked her to join YLCF, at Lanier’s recommendation.  Theresa is my little sister’s best friend, and as I read her blog posts about her courtship I was so touched with her maturity in the Lord.  I met Jennifer a long time ago through local mutual friends, but we finally reconnected online.  I sought out the blogs of Danielle and Katie at the recommendation of Elisabeth.  And after reading Elisabeth Allen’s books, I knew she’d be the perfect fit for YLCF!  Though I don’t think I actually got to read all Trina’s “tipi tales” back when they were first published on YLCF, I was thrilled to meet her in person at the Relevant blogging conference this fall.  The pen name of one of our latest team members has long intrigued me when she’s commented on YLCF, and I’m so thankful to have Everly bringing her youth and her gift to YLCF as well.

When and how did you come to know Jesus? It was May 11, 1987.  My grandma sent me a card every year to commemorate my spiritual “birthday.”  And it was a special reminder to pause and thank Him for saving me.  I was but a little girl—only 3 1/2!—but I understood that I wanted to trust Jesus to save me from my sins.  So I knelt down right there by our couch and asked Him into my heart and life, “no turning back.”  I know I still have a lot of learning and growing to do, but I can’t imagine life without Him.

What is your family (faith) background? If they are believers, how do you encourage each other? I am so blessed in my godly heritage.  My mom’s parents came to Christ through her Sunday School attendance as a child.  My dad’s parents were raised in Christian homes.  Growing up, I went to church with the same people who babysat my dad when he was little.

What is your approach to sharing your faith with nonbelievers? Sometimes I struggle with the fact that I don’t share Christ in every conversation I have with strangers.  But then I remember that how I live and interact with my family and in our family business can speak volumes of Him without ever breathing His name.

What are your favorite recipes? Do you have a signature dish that you love to make?  I adore Asian food.  And Italian.  And Mexican.  But cooking for a crowd these days will usually find me whipping up fried rice, stir fry, and egg flower soup.  Especially considering that when I make Mexican food, I end up making it too hot for everyone!

What’s your favorite book you’re reading right now?  I just got a stack of Sally Clarkson’s books at a conference I attended.  I love that I can hear her voice as I read each word.  And I love the truth and wisdom she imparts to young moms like me.

What books remain your favorite over the years?  Randy Alcorn’s Deadline trilogy.  The Little Britches series.  P.G. Wodehouse’s beloved British humor.  The Anne books which I desperately need to re-read.

What is your most-remembered, favorite childhood story/book? My parents read the Little House books aloud to us, and they were the gateway to a love of reading.  But early childhood loves would include Nurse Nancy and books illustrated by Eloise Wilkin.

How many siblings do you have, and where do you fall in the birth order?  I’m the oldest of four.  My brother William is two years younger than me, and then there’s a 10-year gap.  I was 12 when my little sister Jessica was born, and three years later our youngest brother Caleb followed.

What’s your preferred form of exercise?  Exercise—what’s that?  Oh, wait.  I do like walking.  When I get the chance!

If someone met you in person, what’s one thing they’d learn about you that your online friends might not know?  I tend to be the one who says something random, who tells a joke or draws attention to the baby’s antics to lighten the mood.  I appreciate deep and serious conversations, and I’ve cried on the shoulders of plenty of friends, but I usually try to be the one who makes everybody laugh instead of cry.

If you could vacation anywhere, where would it be? Yellowstone National Park, of course.  It holds many precious memories for both my husband’s and my families, since it’s where we met!

What is your favorite pair of shoes? I’d be a barefoot kind of girl except for our concrete floor.  So I live in my Birkenstocks.  When I have to put on “real” shoes, I love my Keen tennis shoes or my farmer’s-wife-fashion-statement “Romeos.”  I’ve also recently obtained my first pair of Chacos.  (We’re big on taking care of our feet with good shoes.)

Are you a morning person or a night owl or neither?  Once upon a time I was definitely a night owl.  Motherhood has changed that.  I’d love to be a morning person.  But the most important thing to me at the moment is getting some rest at one end of the day or the other!

Outside of immediate family, who had the most impact on your life?  In my teen years, my pen pals were the ones who had the most impact on my life.  Discussions via letter helped both form and shake my convictions.

How have “real life women” influenced and encouraged you over the years?  In recent years, it’s been a few local “older women” who have reminded me that it’s okay not to do it all. It’s the ladies at my church who don’t know or care about my status online or even how clean my home is, but how happy my children are.  It’s the online friends who have become real life friends that let me learn lessons along with them and speak courage into me when I don’t have it on my own.

Your favorite spot in nature? Where you hear or feel God’s presence the most? Anywhere outside.  My hair blowing, my cheeks tingling, my senses overwhelmed by nature—that’s when my heart can hear Him best, when I remember how big He is and how small I am and how little my troubles are.

If you could describe yourself using a book character, which one would it be? A combination of Jo March and Anne Shirley, with a bit of Laura Ingalls thrown in for good measure.  Seriously.

Where are you reading in the Scriptures just now?  What is your favorite book of the Bible?  I’m reading the Gospel of John at the moment.  And I love, love the Psalms.  But my favorite book is Philippians.  We did a musical drama of the first chapter when I was in high school, and it’s been very dear to me ever since.

What did you like about your education and what do you wish you and/or your parents had done differently? My parents raised us to be adults, to make our own decisions and be responsible for our own actions.  The older I get the more I appreciate that!

If you’re married, what are some ways you’ve worked through conflict with your spouse?  We’re both pretty easy-going, and wouldn’t do anything to pick a fight.  But that can be an issue, too, when we avoid talking about things!  I think the biggest thing I’ve learned about conflict in marriage is that you’re better off to assume the other person’s intentions were good.  Filter out the impatience in their voice and remember the exhaustion that might have provoked it—let love hear only love.  Because the truth is that 99.9% of the conflict could be avoided if I would avoid being easily offended.

If you’re married, did you ever question that your spouse was “the one for you” early on? From the time I was 13 years old, I wondered if he was “the one.”  By the time we were 18, I knew there could never be another.  That doesn’t mean it was always easy, or that I was sure I’d get to marry him someday.  But I knew he was the one I’d always love.